FEBRUARY 10, 2020 – NEW JOBS CREATED IN JANUARY, UNEMPLOYMENT RATE HOLDS The Labor Department reported the US economy added a solid 225,000 new jobs in January, with the unemployment rate ticking up slightly from 3.5 to 3.6 percent. This data could indicate a great year ahead, if the labor market continues to fuel economic growth through 2020. The labor …
February 3, 2020 — Economic Data Stable as Fed Maintains the Status Quo
FEBRUARY 3, 2020 – ECONOMIC DATA STABLE AS FED MAINTAINS STATUS QUO 2020 is off to a steady start as GDP grew at 2.3 percent for 2019, after rising at a seasonally adjusted rate of 2.1 percent in the fourth quarter. Year over year growth was at its slowest pace since 2016, but in-line with what has been experienced during …
January 27, 2020 — After World Economic Conference in Davos, FOMC meets this Week
JANUARY 27, 2020 – AFTER WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM IN DAVOS, FOMC MEETS THIS WEEK Last week, President Trump spoke at the Davos world economic forum, where he criticized the Fed’s monetary policy. Trump is demanding interest rates should be reduced to zero, a negative interest rate scenario, to stimulate the US economy he believes is being held back with rates …
January 20, 2020 — Some Optimism as December Data is Released
JANUARY 20, 2020 – SOME OPTIMISM AS DECEMBER DATA IS RELEASED Phase One of a new US-China trade agreement was signed last week. Though not exactly the agreement most were hoping for, it is movement towards some sort of resolution to the ongoing stalemate. As well, December figures for housing starts, manufacturing output and consumer spending were released last week, …
January 13, 2020 — Ten Straight Years of Payroll Growth
JANUARY 13, 2020 – TEN STRAIGHT YEARS OF PAYROLL GROWTH Friday, the Labor Department released the final payroll and wage growth numbers for 2019. Payrolls increased by 145,000 missing expectations for 160,000 new jobs. 2019 was the slowest year for job creation since 2011, with an increase of 2.1 million jobs for the year; in comparison, 2.7 million jobs were …
January 6, 2020 — US Economy Resilient; Rates Expected to Remain Low
JANUARY 6, 2020 – US ECONOMY RESILIENT; RATES EXPECTED TO REMAIN LOW Uncertainty in the global economy and, now, the rising of tensions in the Middle East, could influence the outlook ahead of the next FOMC meeting at month’s end. But the resiliency of the US economy, which continues to grow even when manufacturing is contracting a bit, was noted …
December 16, 2019 — Fed Leaves Rates Alone at its Last Meeting of 2019
DECEMBER 16, 2019 – FED LEAVES RATES ALONE AT ITS LAST MEETING OF 2019 After meeting last week, the Fed held interest rates steady and signaled there is no rush to raise them. The Fed lowered rates at their three previous meetings to protect the US economy from the effects of trade tensions and a global slowdown. Fed officials indicated …
December 9, 2019 — November Jobs and Wages Rise, as Unemployment Falls
DECEMBER 9, 2019 – NOVEMBER JOBS AND WAGES RISE, AS UNEMPLOYMENT FALLS The Labor Department announced the US job market strengthened noticeably in November. 266,000 new jobs were added last month, the fastest pace since January, when 312,000 jobs were added. Jobs grew at an average of 205,000 in the last three months through November, a pick-up from earlier this …
December 2, 2019 — Q3 GDP Grows 2.1 Percent
DECEMBER 2, 2019 – Q3 GDP GROWS 2.1 PERCENT On Wednesday, the Commerce Department announced the July-September GDP growth rate grew at a moderate 2.1 percent, slightly above expectations of 1.9 percent. But economists think the fourth quarter will show a sharp decline. The year started well with 3.1 percent GDP growth in the first quarter, but expectations are now …
November 25, 2019 — Trump and Powell Meet in a Slow Data Week
NOVEMBER 25, 2019 – TRUMP AND POWELL MEET IN A SLOW DATA WEEK In the run up to the Thanksgiving holiday, there was little economic data to report. However, on Monday, Fed Chair Powell had a private meeting with President Trump and Treasury Secretary Mnuchin to discuss a variety of issues, including growth, employment trends and inflation. It was reported, …