Economy

Residential single family homes construction by KB Home are shown under construction in the community of Valley Center, California, U.S. June 3, 2021. Mike Blake | Reuters Household debt rose by its highest dollar amount in 14 years during the second quarter, thanks mostly to a surge in the housing market that brought the collective

A real estate agent stands in the doorway as Giovani and Nicole Quiroz of Brooklyn, New York visit an open house in West Hempstead, New York. Raychel Brightman | Newsday LLC | Newsday | Getty Images The popular 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell back to the lowest level since February last week, and the 15-year

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday held its benchmark interest rate near zero and said the economy continues to progress despite concerns over the pandemic spread. As expected, the Federal Open Market Committee concluded its two-day meeting by keeping interest rates in a target range near zero. Along with that, the committee reiterated its view that

An inflation indicator that the Federal Reserve uses as its key guide rose 3.5% in June, a sharp acceleration that was nonetheless right around Wall Street expectations, the Commerce Department reported Friday. The personal consumption expenditures price index, which excludes food and energy, was expected to increase 3.6% at a time when the U.S. economy

A real estate for sale sign shows the home as being “Under Contract” in Washington, DC, November 19, 2020. Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images Pending sales of existing homes in June, which are measured by signed contracts, fell 1.9% month-to-month, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales were also down 1.9% compared

The U.S. economy rose at a disappointing rate in the second quarter, the Commerce Department reported Thursday in a sign that the U.S. has escaped the shackles of the Covid-19 pandemic but still has more work to do. Gross domestic product, a measure of all goods and services produced during the April-to-June period, accelerated 6.5%

Customers shop for produce at a supermarket on June 10, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. Scott Olson | Getty Images The International Monetary Fund warned Tuesday that there’s a risk inflation will prove to be more than just transitory, pushing central banks to take pre-emptive action. The issue is currently dividing the investment community, which has

A “For Sale” sign is seen in front of a home on May 30, 2019 in Miami, Florida. Joe Raedle | Getty Images Home prices continue to break records, as strong demand slams up against weak supply. Nationally, prices in May were 16.6% higher than in May 2020, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller home

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell testifies during a U.S. House Oversight and Reform Select Subcommittee hearing on coronavirus crisis, on Capitol Hill in Washington, June 22, 2021. Graeme Jennings | Pool | Reuters When the Fed emerges from its July meeting, it may sound a bit more prone to keeping its ultra-easy policy in place

A man wearing a protective face mask walks by 14 Wall Street in the financial district of New York, November 19, 2020. Shannon Stapleton | Reuters A volatile environment for government bonds is reflecting a highly uncertain future for the U.S. economy, pointing to both slower growth and stubborn inflation. After a burst higher earlier

Sales of newly built homes dropped in June to the lowest level since the early days of the coronavirus pandemic in April 2020, according to data released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Monday. Sales of new single-family homes fell to an annualized rate of 676,000, 6.6% below May’s rate of 724,000 and 19.4% below

A home stands for sale in a Brooklyn neighborhood with a limited supply of single family homes on March 31, 2021 in New York City. Spencer Platt | Getty Images After four straight months of declines, sales of previously owned homes rose 1.4% in June month-to-month to a seasonally adjust annualized rate of 5.86 million

Weekly jobless claims unexpected moved higher last week despite hopes that the U.S. labor market is poised for a strong recovery heading into the fall. Initial filings for unemployment insurance totaled 419,000 for the week ended July 17, well above the 350,000 Dow Jones estimate and more than the upwardly revised 368,000 from the previous

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen answers questions during the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing to examine the FY22 budget request for the Treasury Department on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, June 23, 2021. Greg Nash | Pool | Reuters Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Friday warned Congress that her department will need to embark on “extraordinary

A National Park Service worker replaces a flag at the Washington Monument which reopened today following a six month closure due to COVID-19 safety measures, in Washington U.S., July 14, 2021. Kevin Lemarque | Reuter The U.S. economy is expected to post another roaring growth spurt in the second quarter, before a slow and steady

San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly poses at the bank’s headquarters in San Francisco, California, U.S., July 16, 2019. Ann Saphir | Reuters San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly told CNBC on Tuesday that a strong economic recovery will allow the central bank to slow its asset purchases, possibly near the end

Wholesale prices for June rose more than expected in another sign that inflation is moving at a faster pace than markets had anticipated. The producer price index, which measures what companies get for the goods they produce, increased 1% from May and jumped 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. That marked the second month in a

Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell to a new pandemic-era low last week, the Labor Department reported Thursday. First-time filings for benefits totaled 360,000, in line with Dow Jones estimates and the best number since March 14, 2020. The total represented a substantial decrease from the previous week’s upwardly revised 386,000. Continuing claims, which run