Tag: Economy

Consumer Watchdog Says Australians Paying Too Much for Electricity

As millions of Australians have been hit with electricity price surges since July, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has raised concerns that electricity bills are too high. In May, the Australian Energy Regulator released the new default market offer, which caps the maximum rate energy retailers can charge residential and small business customers…


Florida Becomes Nation’s Inflation Hot Spot, Housing a Major Contributor

Florida has become the nation’s inflation hot spot. Data released on July 12 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) showed that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.2 percent in June, behind a 0.1 percent increase in May. Overall, there was an increase of 3.0 percent over the last 12 months before a seasonal…


Pending UPS Strike Will Likely Disrupt The Package Delivery Sector

A looming strike by the United Parcel Service could disrupt deliveries, in the largest strike against a single employer in American history. Contract negotiations between UPS and the Teamsters stalled last week, raising the likelihood of a strike in early August, as well as major disruptions in a highly competitive package delivery market. On June…


No More Cost of Living Relief As Australian Government Focuses on Budget Repair

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers has stated that the government is currently not considering more living cost relief but instead will focus on repairing the budget to alleviate the pressure facing households. This comes as the federal Labor government is expected to deliver a budget surplus of around $20 billion (US$13.46 billion) for the 2022-2023 financial…


Central Banks Are Increasingly Interested in CBDCs, Says BIS Survey

At least 93 percent of central banks are already researching the implementation of central bank digital currencies (CBCD), according to a recent survey. Twenty-four central banks in emerging and in advanced economies are expected to have digital currencies in circulation by 2030, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) said in a survey published on July…


Hollywood Actors Agree to Mediation, but Strike May Be Unavoidable

LOS ANGELES—Unionized Hollywood actors on the verge of a strike have agreed to allow a last-minute intervention from federal mediators but say they doubt a deal will be reached by a negotiation deadline late Wednesday. “We are committed to the negotiating process and will explore and exhaust every possible opportunity to make a deal, however…


27 Percent of Jobs at High Risk From AI Revolution, Says OECD

PARIS—More than a quarter of jobs in the OECD rely on skills that could be easily automated in the coming artificial intelligence revolution, and workers fear they could lose their jobs to AI, the OECD said on Tuesday. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is a 38-member bloc, spanning mostly wealthy nations but…


Bank of Canada Raises Key Interest Rate to 5% as Underlying Inflation Trend Remains Elevated

OTTAWA—The Bank of Canada raised its overnight rate target by a quarter percentage point (25 basis points) to 5 percent on July 12 in response to more persistent excess demand in the economy and slowing downward momentum with inflation. “Canada’s economy has been stronger than expected,” the BoC said in a statement. The central bank…


Bank of Canada Raises Key Interest Rate to 5 Percent

OTTAWA—The Bank of Canada raised its overnight rate target by a quarter percentage point (25 basis points) to 5 percent on July 12 in response to more persistent excess demand in the economy and slowing downward momentum with inflation. “Canada’s economy has been stronger than expected,” the BoC said in a statement. The central bank…


Wall Street Opens Higher as Inflation Cools in June

Wall Street’s main indexes opened higher on Wednesday after data showed inflation cooled further in June, lifting investor hopes that the Federal Reserve is nearing the end of its monetary tightening cycle. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 133.86 points, or 0.39 percent, at the open to 34,395.28. The S&P 500 opened higher by 28.43…