Author: support

Saying a report by the U.S. Federal Reserve’s inspector general (IG) was “troubling,” Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) castigated Fed chair Jerome Powell in a letter for withholding information about trades by Fed officials. The IG’s investigation was sparked by revelations that Robert Kaplan, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, and Eric Rosengren, president...

As of 9 August, 43 states have passed laws allowing real estate closings to take place online and the remaining seven states are facing growing pressure to make the shift unanimous. The new laws permit online notarization of documents, a key step in closings. Before the COVID virus arrived, only 22 states allowed virtual notarization,...

Two former JPMorgan traders were convicted in Chicago on federal charges of commodities fraud, wire fraud, and attempted market manipulation for their role in rigging gold markets over a period of years. The jury deliberated for eight days before finding top gold trader Gregg Smith and precious-metals desk chief Michael Nowak guilty on charges related...

The average apartment rent in Manhattan has risen more than 20 percent over the 12 months ending 31 July, climbing to $5,113, according to brokerage firm Douglas Elliman. In July 2021, the average rent was $4,009. Studio apartment rents averaged $3,191, one-bedroom flats $4,277, and two-bedroom units $5,810. Landlords’ concessions, such as free redecorating or...

The median selling price of a U.S. home in this year’s second quarter jumped 14.2 percent, year over year, to $413,500, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The median price was higher in 184 of the 185 metro areas the NAR monitors. Prices slipped 0.7 percent in Trenton, N.J. In 80 percent of...

A bipartisan group in the U.S. House of Representatives is pressing the U.S. Federal Reserve to move faster in creating a national digital currency. The group fears leadership in digital currencies by China and private cryptos might threaten the U.S. dollar’s position as the world’s reserve currency, The Wall Street Journal reported. (See “China’s Digital...

U.S. public pension funds—those that support firefighters, police officers, and other retired public employees—lost a median 7.9 percent in the fiscal year ending 30 June, according to the Wilshire Trust Universe Comparison Service, the funds’ worst drubbing since 2009 during the Great Recession. The funds shrank by 8.9 percent during April, May, and June this...

Producer prices—what businesses charge each other for goods or services—rose at a 9.8-percent annual rate in July, their slowest increase since last October, the U.S. labor department reported. June’s increase was 11.3 percent. On a monthly basis, the producer price index (PPI) fell 0.5 percent during July, the sharpest one-month slide since April 2020 when...

In the U.S., the pace of price increases slowed in July to 8.5 percent, year on year, compared to 9.1 percent in June, which was a 41-year peak, the labor department reported. Energy prices downshifted last month, with gasoline prices falling 7.7 percent. The U.S. average price for a gallon of regular gas was down...