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Caution remained the name of the game for U.S. consumers in September, but there was an upswing in spending on back-to-school supplies and less expensive electronics, according to a report by MasterCard Advisors’ SpendingPulse.
Clothing, electronics and online retailers all saw sales gains in September, SpendingPulse said, supporting Wall Street’s view that they got a boost from late back-to-school shopping that pushed sales from August. Get the full story »
The U.S. Federal Reserve should do “much more” monetary easing to spur a sluggish economic recovery, a top Fed official said in an interview published Tuesday.
“In the last several months I’ve stared at our unemployment forecast and come to the conclusion that it’s just not coming down nearly as quickly as it should,” Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans told the Wall Street Journal. Get the full story »
Risks to financial stability remain elevated due to a combination of slow global growth, high sovereign debt burdens and continuing weakness in the banking sector, the International Monetary Fund warned in a report released Tuesday.
In a report published during its annual meetings in Washington, the IMF highlighted persistent risks to the banking system from high debt levels in mature economies and resulting tensions on sovereign bond markets, particularly in Europe. Get the full story »
The Federal Reserve’s asset purchases lowered borrowing costs and helped the economy, and more buying could further ease financial conditions, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Monday.
“I don’t have a number to give you, but I do think that the additional purchases, although we don’t have precise numbers, have the ability to ease financial conditions,” Bernanke said. Get the full story »
From left to right, Paul Volcker, Jill Biden, President Barack Obama, and Penny Pritzker at Monday's meeting of his economic advisory board. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
President Barack Obama on Monday said the United States was facing an “untenable fiscal situation” and would have to get serious about tackling its federal deficit.
The U.S. budget deficit is forecast at a record $1.47 trillion in the fiscal year that ended on Sept. 30, 2010.
Obama said that emergency government spending measures he took to support growth and hiring when he took office last year had temporarily added to the funding gap, but the deficit had to be tackled going forward. Get the full story »
Consumers aren’t in a spending mood and there is little indication that they will be anytime soon, according to a new poll from Harris Interactive.
Indeed, the market research firm has asked the same set of questions to consumers seven times since the economic crisis began in 2008 and, with few exceptions, the responses have scarcely changed, the New York-based firm said.
The likelihood that consumers will make a big ticket purchase remains low, with 88 percent saying they are “not likely” to buy or lease a new car or truck and 79 percent saying they are “not likely” to buy a computer. Similarly, 90 percent said they are “not likely” to buy a new house or condo. Get the full story »
New orders received by U.S. factories fell by 0.5 percent in August, resuming a downtrend as demand for transportation equipment declined sharply, according to a Commerce Department report on Monday.
Total orders fell to a seasonally adjusted $408.9 billion after an upwardly revised 0.5 percent increase in July and a 0.6 percent fall in June. Economists surveyed by Reuters had forecast a decline of 0.4 percent in August. Get the full story »
Pending sales of previously owned U.S. homes rose more than expected in August to a four-month high, indicating the housing market was regaining some stability after recent steep declines.
The National Association of Realtors said its Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in August, increased 4.3 percent, to 82.3, from July. Get the full story »
CME Group Inc.’s daily trading volume rose in September and the third quarter as a whole, the exchange operator said, continuing a trend of growth. Get the full story »
The Federal Reserve should take further action to stimulate the economy, or risk letting it fall into a vicious cycle of joblessness and deflationary pressures, top Fed official said on Friday. Get the full story »
Consumer spending rose slightly more than expected in August, but inflation remained subdued, leaving the door open for the Federal Reserve to launch a fresh round of monetary policy easing. Get the full story »
Bloomberg News | Manufacturing probably expanded in September at the slowest pace in 10 months, underscoring the Federal Reserve’s forecast of “modest” U.S. growth, economists said before reports today. Get the full story »
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Thursday the U.S. economic recovery remains disappointingly slow with unemployment too high.
The Fed has a role to play in returning the economy health, he told teachers at a town-hall event.
“We certainly have in the near term and the medium term…some very difficult challenges,” he said. Get the full story »
American International Group Inc. laid out a plan on Thursday that sets the company on a path for an accelerated payback of taxpayer bailout money, but also increases the risk for the government.
The plan, which comes a little over two years after AIG was rescued from the brink of collapse, will see the Federal Reserve Bank of New York getting repaid in full and ending its involvement in AIG, leaving the company to deal with just the Treasury Department. Get the full story »
