The U.S. housing market continues to show signs of a robust 2017, a development that dovetails nicely with recent monthly surveys that show consumer confidence is at a high level.
An ‘unprecedented’ political division looms behind otherwise positive yardsticks, economists say
The calendar was crowded last week with reports on everything from retail sales and housing starts to inflation and interest rates, but two reports released Friday were among the best snapshots so far of the economy two months into the new Trump administration.
The headline news in the Labor Department’s February employment report — 235,000 new jobs and a 4.7 percent unemployment rate — cheered economy watchers, but it was not the only positive trend to be found among the fresh figures.
The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates only twice in the last decade, but recent remarks from Fed chairman Janet Yellen and some of her colleagues have convinced economists and the financial markets that an increase is likely to come next week.
As a key indicator of U.S. consumer confidence continues to reflect the nation’s partisan politics, economy watchers would be wise to follow the money, as in what Americans are willing to buy and how much they’re paying for it.
A trio of strong reports last week gave U.S. economy watchers reason to cheer — retail sales, building permits and the leading economic index.
It has never been easy for companies to gauge Americans’ willingness to spend, but the nation’s deep partisan political divisions are making that judgment more difficult to render than usual.
The U.S. economy added 227,000 jobs in January in a show of strength that surprised the experts. The total was the highest in four months and it was significantly more than economists expected.
The U.S. economy added 227,000 jobs in January — the most in four months.
The U.S. housing market continues to show signs of a robust 2017, a development that dovetails nicely with recent monthly surveys that show consumer confidence is at a high level.
An ‘unprecedented’ political division looms behind otherwise positive yardsticks, economists say
The calendar was crowded last week with reports on everything from retail sales and housing starts to inflation and interest rates, but two reports released Friday were among the best snapshots so far of the economy two months into the new Trump administration.
The headline news in the Labor Department’s February employment report — 235,000 new jobs and a 4.7 percent unemployment rate — cheered economy watchers, but it was not the only positive trend to be found among the fresh figures.
The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates only twice in the last decade, but recent remarks from Fed chairman Janet Yellen and some of her colleagues have convinced economists and the financial markets that an increase is likely to come next week.
As a key indicator of U.S. consumer confidence continues to reflect the nation’s partisan politics, economy watchers would be wise to follow the money, as in what Americans are willing to buy and how much they’re paying for it.
A trio of strong reports last week gave U.S. economy watchers reason to cheer — retail sales, building permits and the leading economic index.
It has never been easy for companies to gauge Americans’ willingness to spend, but the nation’s deep partisan political divisions are making that judgment more difficult to render than usual.
The U.S. economy added 227,000 jobs in January in a show of strength that surprised the experts. The total was the highest in four months and it was significantly more than economists expected.
The U.S. economy added 227,000 jobs in January — the most in four months.
