Last week, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) told a group of economists that a federal hiring freeze had left it unable to contact the usual number of businesses it uses to monitor price changes.
Tag: U.S. Federal Reserve
FED’S BEIGE BOOK TAKES ON A DARKER SHADE
The U.S. Federal Reserve’s latest Beige Book, a collection of anecdotes and snapshots of business conditions around the country, shows flat hiring, rising costs, and a contraction in the U.S. economy. “Economic activity has declined slightly since the previous report,” which was released on 23 April, the central bank said in a statement. ......
IN MEETING WITH POWELL, TRUMP AGAIN PRESSES FOR LOWER INTEREST RATES
Donald Trump and Jerome Powell, chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve, met for about 30 minutes on 29 May at Trump’s invitation, the White House press office said.
INFLATION FALLS TO 2.1 PERCENT, VIRTUALLY MATCHING FED’S TARGET
The U.S. Federal Reserve’s favorite measure of inflation showed prices rose at a 2.1-percent annual rate in April, next door to the Fed’s long-held 2-percent target rate.
U.S. DOLLAR’S VALUE DROPS AGAINST OTHER WORLD CURRENCIES
Last week, the U.S. dollar’s value declined the most in any week since Donald Trump’s 2 April “Liberation Day” tariff announcement.
APRIL INFLATION PACE WAS THE SLOWEST IN FOUR YEARS
Last month, the U.S. inflation rate slipped from 2.4 percent to 2.3, its slowest since early 2021 and its third consecutive month of decline, the labor department reported last week.
FED HELD RATES STEADY AS IT BRACES FOR TARIFFS’ IMPACT
The U.S. Federal Reserve left its key interest rates unchanged at last week’s meeting and warned that risks are rising that Donald Trump’s tariff campaign will raise prices and eliminate jobs.
INFLATION RISES TO 2.8 PERCENT IN FEBRUARY
The core Personal Consumption Expenditures Index, the inflation measure the U.S. Federal Reserve watches most closely, rose to 2.8 percent in February compared to 2.4 percent in January, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
U.S. FINANCIAL OUTLOOK IS DETERIORATING, MOODY’S WARNS
Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff regime will complicate efforts to manage the growing federal debt as high interest rates persist, Moody’s warned last week.
INFLATION AND HIGH GOVERNMENT DEBT ARE LINKED, STUDY FINDS
When a government borrows to fund its programs, that puts pressure on consumer prices, according to research by Ernie Tedeschi, director of economics at Yale University’s Budget Lab and former chief economist for President Joe Biden’s White House Council of Economic Advisers.