Economy

U.S. businesses are experiencing escalating inflation that is being aggravated by a shortage of goods and likely will be passed onto consumers in many areas, the Federal Reserve reported Wednesday. In its periodic “Beige Book” look at the nation’s economic picture, the central bank also reported that growth overall had “downshifted slightly to a moderate

First-time filings for unemployment claims in the U.S. dropped to 310,000 last week, easily the lowest of the Covid era and a significant step toward the pre-pandemic normal, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Claims had been expected to total 335,000 for the week ended Sept. 4, according to economists surveyed by Dow Jones. The total

Prices that producers get for final demand goods and services surged in August at their highest annual rate since at least 2010, the Labor Department reported Friday. The producer price index rose 0.7% for the month, above the 0.6% Dow Jones estimate, though below the 1% increase in July. On a year-over-year basis, the gauge

Thomas Trutschel | Photothek | Getty Images Now might be a good time for the Federal Reserve to start worrying about inflation. August’s jobs report, besides being a big disappointment on the 235,000 headline number, also showed that wages are rising even with weak hiring. Average hourly earnings jumped 0.6% for the month, about double

Dallas Federal Reserve President Robert Kaplan would like to see the central bank announce next month that it will begin tightening its policy reins. Among his reasons is a general belief that the economy can withstand a little less help from the Fed. But Kaplan also said he’s concerned about inflation and “excess risk taking”

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell indicated Friday that the central bank is likely to begin withdrawing some of its easy-money policies before the end of the year, though he still sees interest rate hikes off in the distance. In a much-anticipated speech as part of the Fed’s annual Jackson Hole symposium, Powell said the economy

American Peterbilt truck on trucking route Interstate 10 in Louisiana. Tim Graham | Getty Images Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell‘s conviction that the inflation winds whipping through the U.S. economy this year soon will subside is not universally shared. In fact, a growing contingent within the Fed’s virtual halls is raising concern that the supply

A home, available for sale, is shown on August 12, 2021 in Houston, Texas. Brandon Bell | Getty Images Trends in home prices and consumer expectations that were part of data releases Tuesday pointed to more inflationary issues on the horizon for the U.S. economy. The S&P/Case-Shiller index, which measures home prices across 20 major

A Panda Express restaurant displays a “Now Hiring” sign in Tampa, Florida, June 1, 2021. Octavio Jones | Reuters U.S. companies created far fewer jobs than expected in August as the Covid resurgence coincided with cutbacks in hiring, according to a report Wednesday from payroll services firm ADP. Private payrolls rose just 374,000 for the

U.S. economist Joseph Stiglitz believes now is a good time to rewire the U.S. economy, arguing that “we shouldn’t let a crisis go to waste.” The former senior vice president and chief economist of the World Bank said on Thursday that the coronavirus pandemic has highlighted how the economic system isn’t working, referencing inequality, the

Job creation for August was a huge disappointment, with the economy adding just 235,000 positions, the Labor Department reported Friday. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for 720,000 new hires. The unemployment rate dropped to 5.2% from 5.4%, in line with estimates. August’s total — the worst since January — comes with heightened

A pending sale sign in front of a home in Miami. Getty Images Signed contracts to purchase previously owned homes fell 1.8% in July from June, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sky-high home prices have caused affordability to drop dramatically in the last several months. The median price of an existing home was

A home, available for sale, is shown on August 12, 2021 in Houston, Texas. Brandon Bell | Getty Images Sales of existing homes in July rose 2% from June to a seasonally adjusted, annualized rate of 5.99 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors. These sales figures are based on closings, so it

Federal Reserve officials at their July gathering made plans to pull back the pace of their monthly bond purchases likely before the end of the year, meeting minutes released Wednesday indicated. However, the summary of the July 27-28 Federal Open Market Committee gathering indicated that the central bankers wanted to be clear that the reduction,

First-time filings for unemployment insurance hit a pandemic-era low last week, a sign that the jobs market is improving heading into the fall despite worries over the delta Covid variant. Jobless claims for the week ended Aug. 14 totaled 348,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That was below the Dow Jones estimate for 365,000 and

Shoppers carry bags of purchased merchandise at the King of Prussia Mall, in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, December 8, 2018. Mark Makela | Reuters Retail sales were expected to have fallen off in July, as consumers reacted to the delta variant of Covid and held off on online and vehicle purchases. Economists expect retail sales

Prospective home buyers arrive to tour a house for sale in Dunlap, Illinois. Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images Borrowers backed away from the mortgage market last week, as higher interest rates chilled a recent revival in refinances. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($548,250 or less)

Shoppers in the U.S. cut back their purchases in July even more than expected as worries over the delta variant of Covid-19 dampened activity and government stimulus dried up. Retail sales for the month fell 1.1%, worse than the Dow Jones estimate of a 0.3% decline and below the upwardly revised 0.7% increase in June.