In a number of ways, Japan’s economy seems to have gone back in time. Inflation and wage growth are mostly back where they were in the early 1990s, just before the spiral of price deflation and economic stagnation that became known as “the lost decades.” That prompted the Bank of Japan on Friday to raise […]
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The S&P 500 clambered back to a record high on Thursday, inching above a peak reached in early December, after a rally that began with easing inflation concerns tipped over the threshold as President Donald J. Trump reiterated his commitment to bring down oil prices — a major component of inflation. The S&P 500 rose […]
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When House Republicans gathered behind closed doors on Capitol Hill last week to hash out their plans for cutting taxes, Representative David Schweikert, an Arizona Republican, sounded a note of caution. The United States’ fiscal problems were at risk of spiraling out of control, Mr. Schweikert told his colleagues. He warned that investors on Wall […]
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Seven years ago, when Republicans passed the most significant overhaul of the tax code in a generation, they were sure the law would supercharge investment, raise wages and shift the American economy into a higher gear. So did it? The answer, at least for now, is largely lost to history. A pandemic and a surge […]
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The average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages surpassed 7 percent for the first time since May, Freddie Mac reported on Thursday, extending a weekslong climb that could push more buyers and sellers to the sidelines. The rate on the 30-year mortgage, the most popular home loan in the United States, jumped to 7.04 percent this […]
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Consumer prices rose more quickly in December, the latest sign that the Federal Reserve’s fight against inflation may have stalled. The Consumer Price Index rose 0.4 percent from November, and was up 2.9 percent from a year earlier, the Labor Department said on Wednesday. It was the fastest one-month increase in overall prices since February, […]
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The advertisement from Capital One had many of the same promises that other banks offer for high-yield savings accounts: There were no fees, no minimum deposits and the money would earn much more in interest than in traditional bank accounts. “What’s the catch? There is none,” the bank boasted. But, according to a lawsuit filed […]
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Governments around the world are uncomfortably watching their borrowing costs rise, following the lead of the U.S. Treasury market. But even in a global rout in bonds, Britain stands out. British government bonds, known as gilts, are suffering a particularly harsh sell-off, as investors recoil from the country’s low economic growth, stubborn inflation and high […]
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Employers stuck the landing in 2024, finishing the year with a bounce of hiring after a summer slowdown and an autumn marred by disruption. The economy added 256,000 jobs in December, seasonally adjusted, the Labor Department reported on Friday. The number handily beat expectations after two years of cooling in the labor market, and the […]
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Stocks and bonds tumbled on Friday, as investors’ worries over the scale of government borrowing were amplified by signs of stubborn inflation, extending a sharp rise in borrowing costs for consumers and companies. Stronger-than-expected data on the labor market released on Friday has intensified concerns that the economy continues to run at a solid pace, […]
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There was a moment in late September when mortgage rates, after a monthslong decline, appeared poised to drop low enough to bring would-be buyers and sellers off the sidelines. But that window has closed, at least for now. The average rate on the 30-year mortgage, the most popular home loan in the United States, rose […]
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Federal Reserve officials cut interest rates as expected last month. But minutes from their December meeting suggest that the decision was a close call — and that there is no guarantee policymakers will lower rates again anytime soon. The minutes of the central bank’s Dec. 17-18 meeting, released on Wednesday, showed that most Fed officials […]
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