Almost 40 percent of U.S. companies will cut their workforces in the new year, according to a poll of 906 executives by Resumé Builders, with even more imposing a hiring freeze.
Tag: U.S. Economy
FED HOLDS RATES STEADY, PROJECTS THREE CUTS IN 2024
At its mid-December meeting, the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee not only froze interest rates at their current levels, but also said it expects to make three quarter-point rate cuts next year and drop rates by a full point in 2025.
ECONOMIC UPDATE – MARKET OVERVIEW
Everything's coming up roses. In Japan, the world’s third-largest economy, its central bank said today that it will keep its cheap money scheme going (i.e. quantitative easing) and its negative 0.1 interest rates to juice up its economy which contracted at an annualized 2.9 percent rate in the last quarter.
JUNK FOOD SALES FATTEN CAMPBELL’S BOTTOM LINE, EXPAND McDONALD’S BURGER EMPIRE
Campbell Soup’s third-quarter profits beat analysts’ expectations as sales of snacks and packaged meals countered reduced spending in other categories by budget-minded shoppers.
USE OF ONLINE LAYAWAY PLANS UP 17 PERCENT THIS YEAR
Online shoppers’ use of layaway or “buy now pay later” plans (BNPL) has jumped 17 percent since 1 November to a record $10.1 billion as household savings have fallen below pre-COVID levels, the Financial Times reported.
DEMOCRATS IN CONGRESS DECLARE WAR ON PRIVATE EQUITY HOME LANDLORDS
Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives have introduced a bill titled “The American Neighborhoods Protection Act.” It would require private equity groups owning 75 single-family homes or more to pay an annual fee of $10,000 per house. The money would sustain a fund that would help U.S. households make down payments on homes.
CONSUMERS GLOOM IS LIFTING, MICHIGAN SURVEY FINDS
Consumers now see a sunnier economic future than they did in October and November, according to the closely watched University of Michigan monthly survey of consumer sentiment.
AVAILABLE JOBS IN OCTOBER WERE FEWEST SINCE 2021
In October, there were fewer jobs available than at any time since early 2021, Bloomberg reported.
U.S. ECONOMY GROWS 199,000 NEW JOBS IN NOVEMBER
American businesses took on 199,000 new workers last month, a figure reflecting the return to work by auto workers after strikes were settled, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported.
SPECULATORS BET ON BITCOIN’S RETURN
Crypto fans are betting cryptocurrencies’ troubles are fading now that the U.S. has clamped down on Binance and shut down FTX, two high-flying crypto trading platforms, and successfully prosecuted Changpeng Zhao and Sam Bankman-Fried, their respective CEOs.









