Economy

France’s newly-installed government on Thursday presented a draft budget containing 60 billion euros ($65.6 billion) in tax hikes and spending cuts, as analysts warned the package may not be enough to stave off ratings downgrades for the economy. The 2025 budget features a greater focus on tax-raising measures than some were expecting. Analysts also flagged

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell arrives to a news conference following the September meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee at the William McChesney Martin Jr. Federal Reserve Board Building on September 18, 2024 in Washington, DC.  Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images This week’s inflation data provided more evidence that the Federal Reserve is nearing

A measure of wholesale prices showed no change in September, pointing to a continued easing in inflation, the Labor Department reported Friday. The producer price index, which measures what producers get for their goods and services, was flat for the month and up 1.8% from a year ago. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been

The pace of price increases over the past year took an unexpected step higher in September as policymakers contemplate their next move on interest rates, according to a Labor Department report Thursday. The consumer price index, a broad gauge measuring the costs of goods and services across the U.S. economy, increased a seasonally adjusted 0.2%

Heavy traffic begins to back up on Interstate 275 South as residents evacuate St. Petersburg, Florida, ahead of Hurricane Milton, U.S., October 7, 2024.  Octavio Jones | Reuters Hurricane Milton’s once-in-a-century potential could cause damage of more than $50 billion, with the potential to leave behind devastation approaching $175 billion or more in a worst-case

The U.S. economy added far more jobs than expected in September, pointing to a vital employment picture as the unemployment rate edged lower, the Labor Department reported Friday. Nonfarm payrolls surged by 254,000 for the month, up from a revised 159,000 in August and better than the 150,000 Dow Jones consensus forecast. The unemployment rate

Getty Images The September jobs report was surprisingly strong, and the details show that growth came from many different areas of the economy. The biggest contributions came from leisure and hospitality, with 78,000 new positions, and health care and social assistance, at 71,700. If private education was added to the health-care group, as some economists

Job seekers attend the JobNewsUSA.com South Florida Job Fair held at the Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida, on June 26, 2024. Joe Raedle | Getty Images The unemployment rate for men in Black and Hispanic racial groups declined in September while staying little-changed for other racial groups, according to data released Friday by the Department

A hiring sign is posted on the exterior of Urban Outfitters at the Tysons Corner Center mall on August 22, 2024 in Tysons, Virginia.  Anna Rose Layden | Getty Images September’s outsized payrolls boost takes the U.S. economy out of the shadows of recession and gives the Federal Reserve a fairly open glide path to

Attendees at the Albany Job Fair in Latham, New York, US, on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024.  Angus Mordant | Bloomberg | Getty Images September’s jobs picture is expected to look a lot like August’s — a gradual slowdown in hiring, a modest increase in wages and a labor market that is looking a lot like

Private sector hiring picked up in September, indicating the labor market is holding its ground despite some signs of weakness, payrolls processing firm ADP reported Wednesday. Companies added 143,000 jobs for the month, an acceleration from the upwardly revised 103,000 in August and better than the 128,000 consensus forecast from economists polled by Dow Jones.

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Xavierarnau | E+ | Getty Images Saudi Arabia cut its growth forecasts and raised its budget deficit estimates for the fiscal years 2024 to 2026, looking ahead to a period of higher spending and lower projected oil revenues. Real gross domestic product is now expected to grow 0.8% this year, a dramatic

Port of Miami dockworkers strike near the port entrance and demand a new labor contract, on October 1, 2024 in Miami, Florida.  Giorgio Viera | Afp | Getty Images A strike hitting ports along the East and Gulf coasts could stoke prices for food, autos and a host of other consumer goods but is expected

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Monday that the recent half percentage point interest rate cut shouldn’t be interpreted as a sign that future moves will be as aggressive, in fact indicating the next moves will be smaller. The central bank chief asserted during a speech in Nashville, Tennessee, that he and his colleagues will

Inflation moved closer to the Federal Reserve’s target in August, easing the way for future interest rate cuts, the Commerce Department reported Friday. The personal consumption expenditures price index, a gauge the Fed focuses on to measure the cost of goods and services in the U.S. economy, rose 0.1% for the month, putting the 12-month

A view of the headquarters of the Swiss National Bank (SNB), before a press conference in Zurich, Switzerland, March 21, 2024.  Denis Balibouse | Reuters The Swiss National Bank on Thursday took a third step to loosen monetary policy this year, bringing its key interest rate down by 25 basis points to 1.0%. The trim,

Consumers’ view on the economy tumbled in September, falling by the largest level in more than three years as fears grew about jobs and business conditions, the Conference Board reported Tuesday. The board’s consumer confidence index slid to 98.7, down from 105.6 in August, the biggest one-month decline since August 2021. The Dow Jones consensus

Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves speaks on the second day of the annual Labour Party conference in Liverpool, north-west England, on September 23, 2024. Paul Ellis | Afp | Getty Images Liverpool, ENGLAND — U.K. Finance Minister Rachel Reeves vowed on Monday that Britain will not return to austerity, but said she would