DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ US cities with military bases risk economic damage in debt ceiling fight
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Washington, DC CNN —The United States could default on its debt in less than two weeks, and cities with a large military presence risk an economic firestorm if lawmakers don’t act. About a sixth of government spending goes toward national defense, a quarter of which is to pay military personnel, according to the Congressional Budget Office. If the United States can’t pay its national defense bills, cities with large military bases face a potentially massive fallout, encompassing missed payments, rising debt and a significant pullback in spending that would cut into local businesses’ bottom lines. That could further damage local economies grappling with financial market turbulence that could unfold even ahead of a possible default. Federal workers could get stuck pulling from their savings accounts or relying on credit to make everyday purchases, Mayo said.

☆ Federal Reserve officials are growing skeptical over suspending rate hikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Some officials are concerned inflation isn’t cooling fast enough, which could prompt an 11th consecutive rate hike when policymakers meet in June. Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome Powell and former Federal Reserve Board Chair Ben Bernanke (R) participate in a discussion at the Federal Reserve Board building in Washington, DC, May 19, 2023. Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty ImagesEarlier this month, Fed officials voted unanimously to raise the benchmark lending rate by a quarter point to a range of 5-5.25%, while signaling a possible pause ahead. Of course, Fed officials’ thinking on monetary policy could drastically change if the United States defaults on its debt, which could happen as soon as June 1. Fed officials always mention that their views on interest rates largely depend on what economic indicators show, resisting taking an absolute stance on how they will vote.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen during a news conference at the Treasury Department in Washington on April 11. (Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters)It’s still likely that the US could default on its obligations early next month – possibly as soon as June 1 – if Congress doesn’t act, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reiterated Monday. President Joe Biden is expected to meet again on Tuesday with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and other top congressional leaders. Still, the actual date could be a number of days or weeks later, depending on how much revenue the federal government collects and how much it has to pay out in coming weeks, Yellen said. Yellen once again urged Congress to act as soon as possible, noting that Treasury’s borrowing costs have increased substantially for securities maturing in early June.

How relevant is this ad to you? Video player was slow to load content Video content never loaded Ad froze or did not finish loading Video content did not start after ad Audio on ad was too loud Other issues

☆ Retail spending rebounded in April
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Americans are setting vacation records and splurging at bars, restaurants and hotels
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

This expected strength in leisure spending means big business for an industry that was on its knees just three years ago. When the pandemic began, restaurants, bars and hotels were hard hit, shedding more than 8 million jobs in the first few months of 2020. A recent survey from Bank of America showed that 68% of Americans plan to take a vacation this year. Vacationing remained elevated in April with 2.7 million Americans not at work because they were on vacation, the highest level for that month since 2017. Leisure spending is usually first on the chopping block because of its discretionary nature.

If confirmed, Kugler, a Colombian-American, would be the first Latino to serve on the Fed board, marking the latest effort by Biden to improve the central bank’s diversity. Kugler, who is currently on leave from Georgetown University, previously worked in the Obama administration as the Labor Department’s chief economist. Getty Images/AlamyJefferson, who joined the Fed as a governor a year ago, has been tapped by Biden to the influential role of vice chair, serving as the No. He joined the Fed board in May 2022, after winning broad bipartisan support during his congressional confirmation process. He taught economics at Swarthmore College, Columbia University and the University of Virginia, and served as a high-ranking administrator at Davidson College.

☆ American consumers are growing worried about a US debt default
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

“If policymakers fail to resolve the debt ceiling crisis, these dismal views over the economy will exacerbate the dire economic consequences of default.”The latest survey showed that the university’s consumer-sentiment index fell by 9% in May. Monthly household spending growth tumbled to 5.4% from a revised 7.1% in December, according to the New York Fed’s Household Spending Survey, which is fielded every four months. Michigan’s report showed US household spending was flat in March from the prior month, after limping just 0.1% in February. Stack on top of that the Federal Reserve’s punishing interest-rate increases and still-high inflation, and consumers might just tap out. The Conference Board’s sentiment survey showed that consumer confidence worsened in April as Americans became more worried about the jobs market.

In that instance, S&P Global Ratings credit rating agency downgraded the government from AAA to AA+ credit rating. The federal government maintains a perfect credit rating from Fitch and Moody’s, but that could change as the stalemate drags on. Investors care about stability and predictability, so a credit rating downgrade would send a chill down Wall Street’s spine. The broadest economic impact of a US debt default would be a recession that would encompass the global economy, including sharp job losses. And the housing market would not be spared by the “economic calamity” of a US government default, as Yellen once described it.

☆ Fed survey: Banks are tightening up their lending standards after rate hikes, turmoil
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Alicia Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Survey respondents attributed the changes in lending standards to economic uncertainty, a reduced appetite for risk, deterioration in collateral values and broader concerns about banks’ funding costs and liquidity positions, according to the Fed report. At the time, banks expected that trend of tightening credit, waning demand and deteriorating loan quality would continue. Fed president: Central bank should weigh effectsFederal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee said in an interview with Yahoo! Fed officials, including Chair Powell, have previously noted that credit tightening could act similarly to a rate hike. A ‘salient risk’Separately on Monday, the Fed released its semi-annual Financial Stability Report, which assesses the resilience of the US financial system.

☆ What the April jobs report means for you, your employer, and the Fed
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Alicia Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Minneapolis CNN —High prices, rising interest rates and banking uncertainty be damned: The US labor market is still chugging right along. “The American labor market right now is simply unstoppable,” RSM economist Joseph Brusuelas wrote in a note Friday. “This is what a soft landing would look like, with job growth gradually slowing to a more sustainable pace,” Faucher added. The milestone comes just three years after the Covid-19 pandemic caused mass layoffs that pushed the Black unemployment rate as high as 16.8%. “Make no mistake, the Black [unemployment] rate is still too high,” Shierholz tweeted.

☆ Will wages outpace inflation for long? It depends on the job
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Washington, DC CNN —Wages are now finally beating inflation, according to the latest quarterly data on wage growth. That was the biggest monthly increase since March 2022, though wage growth had gradually slowed since then. “The folks who left one company and went to another are the ones who are still benefiting from wage growth,” said Morgan Llewellyn, chief data scientist at Jobvite. Part of the continued strength in wage growth largely has to do with employers’ difficulty in hiring, which varies by industry. “Wage growth has still been higher for job changers than job stayers and that suggests that there’s still a shortage of labor for some companies,” said Dawn Fay, operational president at staffing firm Robert Half.

While a debt default doesn't mean all payments would stop, it could unleash economic and fiscal chaos around the world:Financial marketsAmericans' investments would take a direct hit. That's on top of the increased costs Americans are already facing from the Fed's rate hikes. That's because their costs of borrowing money will also rise, which limits the amount of money they can lend out. The economyA debt default could trigger an economic downturn, which would prompt a spike in unemployment. But if the impasse dragged on for six weeks, then more than 7 million jobs would be lost and the unemployment rate would soar above 8%.

☆ US worker pay gains picked up in the first quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

Washington, DC CNN —Compensation for US workers picked up in the first three months of the year, showing that a major source of inflationary pressure persists. The Employment Cost Index, released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, showed that workers were paid 1.2% more in wages and benefits in the first quarter from the prior three-month period. That’s up from analysts’ expectations of 1.1%. This story is developing and will be updated.

☆ GDP: The US economy grew at a much slower pace in the first quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Americans are getting worried about the job market
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Washington, DC CNN —US consumer confidence worsened in April as Americans become more pessimistic about the job market. The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index, which measures attitudes toward the economy and the job market, fell to 101.3 in April, down from 104 in March and marking the lowest level since July 2022. “Compared to last month, fewer households expect business conditions to improve and more expect worsening of conditions in the next six months. They also expect fewer jobs to be available over the short term.”That matches government figures showing the labor market has begun to show some cracks. Employers added 236,000 jobs in March, the smallest gain in two years, and job openings fell below 10 million for the first time since May 2021.

☆ Layoffs loom in the US manufacturing sector as backlogs shrink
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

And surveys from the Institute for Supply Management show that the manufacturing sector has been contracting for several months, while fewer manufacturers report an increase in backlogs. “We’re only seeing a gradual pullback in hiring for manufacturing, even as new demand slows, because these backlogs are still helping sustain activity,” she said. Manufacturing saw job losses in February for the first time in 21 months, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. There were additional manufacturing job losses in the following month. However, while manufacturing layoffs are expected, they are likely to be limited.

☆ Government watchdogs propose tougher scrutiny of nonbank financial companies
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Washington, DC CNN —In response to last month’s turbulence in the banking industry, financial regulators on Friday proposed a more comprehensive approach in identifying and addressing threats to financial stability, including closer scrutiny of nonbank financial companies. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen announced a new framework proposed by the Financial Stability Oversight Council that outlines the vulnerabilities in the financial system and the tools regulators can use to address those risks. The proposal also reverses guidance issued in 2019 that made it more difficult for nonbank financial companies, such as hedge funds and insurers, to be designated as systemically important institutions. “It is an important preventative tool to address systemic risks that may arise from a nonbank financial firm whose activities or distress could threaten the financial system.”FSOC has the power to designate nonbank financial firms as systemically important institutions if their failures pose a threat to financial stability, which would place those firms under the supervision of the Federal Reserve. Firms would be able to request a hearing if FSOC makes a proposed designation.

☆ Janet Yellen says national security may come at a cost in US-China relationship
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Washington, DC CNN —The United States will safeguard its national security, even if it comes at an economic cost to its relationship with China, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Thursday. The federal government will address any national security concerns through export controls, sanctions and by restricting foreign investments, Yellen said. In a speech at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Yellen outlined three objectives of the US relationship with China: prioritizing national security and defending human rights, promoting a healthy and fair economic relationship with China and cooperating with China to address global issues. Yellen’s remarks come at a time when tensions with China remain high, a few months after a Chinese spy balloon flew across the continental United States. “Even though these policies may have economic impacts, they are driven by straightforward national security considerations,” said Yellen, a former Federal Reserve Chair.

☆ Accessing credit has become harder, Fed’s Beige Book shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The report captures the effects of last month’s banking turbulence on businesses and banks themselves. “Lending volumes and loan demand generally declined across consumer and business loan types,” the Fed said in its periodic compilation of business survey responses, known as the Beige Book. A tightening in credit conditions was perhaps the biggest change reflected in the latest Beige Book report. While those concerns have largely subsided, many economists feared it would make it harder to access credit. Other banks in the Richmond Fed’s district reported higher inflows of deposits following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, the report said.

☆ Four out of the five US metro areas with the lowest unemployment are in Florida. Here’s why
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Washington, DC CNN —Four out of the five US metropolitan areas with the lowest unemployment rates are in Florida, thanks to the state’s growing population, robust tourism activity and increased business investment. Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando all had unemployment rates below 2.7% that month. Florida was also the fastest growing state as a percentage during that period, the first time it has notched that top spot since 1957. “Florida is pro-cyclical, so when unemployment is low, it’s going to be even lower in Florida and vice versa,” Pintea said. Some studies have argued that generous unemployment programs keep unemployment higher for longer by disincentivizing workers from searching for a new job.

☆ Retail spending fell in March as consumers pull back
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

Washington, DC CNN —Spending at US retailers fell in March as consumers pulled back amid recessionary fears fueled by the banking crisis. Retail sales, which are adjusted for seasonality but not for inflation, fell by 1% in March from the prior month, the Commerce Department reported on Friday. That was steeper than an expected 0.4% decline, according to Refinitiv, and above the revised 0.2% decline in the prior month. This story is developing and will be updated.

in March, they said the banking crisis heightened that forecast to a recession. Policymakers at the Fed voted unanimously last month for a smaller interest rate increase after turbulence in the banking industry set off fears of bank runs, according to the minutes. The Fed’s latest interest rate increase brought the federal funds rate to a range of 4.75% to 5%, the highest level since September 2007. “Such a tightening in financial conditions would work in the same direction as rate tightening,” Powell said, stressing that the banking industry remained sound. SVB’s collapse was the second-largest bank failure in US history and underpins the worst banking crisis since the Great Recession.

☆ OPEC’s surprise production cut complicates the Fed’s fight against inflation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Energy prices across the globe surged last year when Russia invaded Ukraine, fueling global inflation just as the world’s major economies were beginning to rebalance after the pandemic. Now, with oil prices surging once again, headline inflation could remain elevated for longer or even rise. Even core inflation could be affectedWhile Fed officials consider multiple economic metrics in order to inform their decision making, one of their main points of focus is core inflation, which strips out volatile food and energy prices. However, higher oil prices can eventually push up core prices if they remain elevated for long enough. However, he acknowledged the eventual impact of higher prices.

☆ Where jobs were gained and lost in March
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Government employers and the professional and business services industry also hired at a solid clip last month. Strongest gainsLeisure and hospitality employers added 72,000 jobs last month, the most of any industry. Health care businesses added 34,000 jobs and employment in the business services sector — which includes many white-collar jobs such as accountants, engineers, and consultants — grew by 39,000. The construction industry lost 9,000 jobs in March, the first decline in construction employment in more than a year and the largest job loss in the sector since May 2021 -— though still a drop of just under 1.1%. But while new residential construction has slowed over the past year, construction jobs have held up, mostly because of a backlog in construction projects, Swonk said.

Search resuls for: "Bryan Mena"

25 mentions found