Tag: economic policies

Banks Pass Fed Stress Test With Mixed Outlook for Higher Payouts

The top U.S. banks all passed the Federal Reserve’s annual stress test, which is closely watched by the financial industry, which brought much relief to investors. The 23 financial institutions subject to the Fed’s annual bank stress test were expected to pass with little issue. The assessment was a major hurdle towards paying billions of dollars to…


‘Unsustainable’ Health and Retirement Spending Will Hurt Government Finances: Tax Policy Center

The Tax Policy Center has criticized the recently passed bipartisan debt deal for failing to cut down government spending in health care and Social Security programs, warning that the country’s finances could go haywire in the future without reforms in these categories. “This budget agreement failed to touch the major items of spending growth, health…


‘Low-Road Jobs’: Biden’s Electric Vehicle Push Rattles Major Auto Union Supporter

The United Auto Workers (UAW), a labor union and major Democrat backer, has slammed the Biden administration for giving billions of dollars in funding for boosting electric vehicle (EV) production while traditional autoworkers would lose their jobs or be paid lower wages. “The federal government announced a massive $9.2 billion giveaway loan to Ford Motor…


US Economic Growth Last Quarter Is Revised Up to 2 Percent Annual Rate

WASHINGTON—Showing surprising resilience in the face of higher interest rates, the U.S. economy grew at a 2  annual pace from January through March as consumers spent at the fastest pace in nearly two years. Thursday’s revised figure from the Commerce Department sharply upgraded its assessment of first-quarter growth from its previous estimate of a 1.3…


Wall Street Rises as Banks Gain, Economic Data Eases Recession Fears

Wall Street opened higher on Thursday, as bank stocks rose after major lenders cleared the Federal Reserve’s annual stress test, while economic data pointed to a resilient U.S. economy in the face of aggressive interest rate hikes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.91 points, or 0.01 percent, at the open to 33,854.57. The S&P…


Biden Administration’s Regulations Cost US Households Nearly $10,000 Each, Study Finds

The Biden adminstration’s regulatory burdens have cost almost $10,000 for each American household, standing in contrast to the Trump administration, which reduced such costs, according to a recent report by the Committee to Unleash Prosperity. “The Biden administration has so far been adding regulatory costs at a rate of $617 billion per year of rulemaking,…


Nearly 27 Million Americans Often Don’t Have Enough to Eat: Government Survey

Hunger rates in the United States have risen over the past year following the end of the COVID-19 pandemic and a period of high inflation. More than 26.5 million Americans reported they had “sometimes not enough to eat” or “often not enough to eat” in the past seven days, according to a June 28 Household…


Dollar Holds Near 7-month High Versus Yen on Policy Split; Swedish Crown Record Low

LONDON—The U.S. dollar touched a more than seven-month high against the Japanese yen on Thursday after their respective central banks reaffirmed divergent policy plans, while Sweden’s crown hit a record low after the Riksbank modestly raised its policy rate. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell—speaking on a panel with Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda on…


Oil Steadies After Spiking on US Inventory Fall

LONDON—Oil prices steadied on Thursday, a day after rising sharply on a bigger-than-expected fall in U.S. inventories, as attention shifted back to rising interest rates denting global economic growth. Brent crude futures was up 10 cents, or 0.1 percent, to $74.13 a barrel by 1032 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 11…


Stocks Shrug Off Inflation Angst, Yen Bows to Dollar

LONDON—World shares and the dollar inched higher and gold was at a three-month low on Thursday as traders’ attention continued to swing between the battle to lower inflation and speculation about currency market intervention in China and Japan. Europe’s regional STOXX 600 index barely budged in early trading after what had been its biggest rise…