For decades, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has measured the cost of living in America. However, this figure doesn’t tell the full story about inflation, former U.S. Comptroller of the Currency Gene Ludwig argued in an interview with Bloomberg News Monday (Sept. 22). “The CPI is not tremendously relevant...
Global trade has grown more uncertain, with tariffs hardening into a new economic reality for businesses in the United States. For mid-market companies, the challenge is no longer whether tariffs will impact their operations, but how to preserve profitability without driving customers away in the...
The number of Americans filing for unemployment dropped by 33,000 last week, reversing the previous week’s increase that had taken the number to its highest level in almost four years. There were 231,000 initial claims during the week ended Friday (Sept. 13), down from the...
Every four months, the Federal Reserve releases its survey of household spending, offering a snapshot into where household budgets have been allocated and where paychecks are earmarked for future spending. In the August results, released Monday (Sept. 15), the pace of spending slowed, although many...
Inflation’s pace quickened in August, and in the key category of food — and specifically grocery prices — the pinch on the household budget has been palpable. Data released on Thursday (Sept. 11) showed that in August, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers...
More Americans filed for unemployment last week than in any week since 2021, the Department of Labor said in a Thursday (Sept. 11) press release. There were 263,000 initial claims during the week ended Friday (Sept. 6), a figure that was 27,000 higher than the...
The Labor Department’s Office of the Inspector General said Wednesday (Sept. 10) that it has begun a review of the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ “challenges” in collecting and reporting economic data. In a letter addressed to William J. Wiatrowski, acting commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Laura B. Nicolosi, assistant...
Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf said Wednesday (Sept. 10) that low-income consumers are “living on the edge.” Speaking with CNBC’s Squawk Box, Scharf said the bank’s data shows that these consumers are spending the money they have and that their balances are below pre-pandemic levels....
U.S. import cargo volumes are projected to decline for the remainder of 2025, after a near-record summer surge driven by retailers stocking up ahead of rising tariffs and an unpredictable trade policy landscape. The Global Port Tracker report, released Tuesday (Sept. 9) by the National...