Economy

China and U.S. Fail to Come to Agreement on Trade

Posted by David Stone on Jul 20th, 2017 // No Comments

China and the United States on Wednesday could not reach an agreement on major steps to lower the trade deficit in the U.S. with China, which has cast doubt over the security and economic relations of President Trump with Beijing. The...

Canadian Dollar Strengthens as Prices of Oil and Exports Rise

Posted by admin on Jul 10th, 2017 // No Comments

Against its US counterpart, the Canadian dollar showed strength with the recent rise in oil prices that also resulted in a solid gain for the nation’s exports. The data published by Statistics Canada indicated that the country’s...

India Launches Ambitious Tax Reform

Posted by David Stone on Jul 2nd, 2017 // No Comments

One of the most ambitious plans for economic reforms in India over the last 70 years will boost the country’s tax receipts and provide businesses with simplicity, but its true impact might not be felt for as long as 10 years because...

New Jobs Almost 50,000 Less than Expected

Posted by David Stone on Jun 2nd, 2017 // No Comments

In May, job creation took a steep drop with only 138,000 new jobs created, and the unemployment rate dropped to 4.3%, according to data released on Friday by the Department of Labor in the U.S. Economists were expecting nonfarm payrolls...

Debt in U.S. Households Returns

Posted by David Stone on May 18th, 2017 // No Comments

It took close to 10 years, but debt made a return to U.S. households. Americans have borrowed more money now than during the height of the 2008 credit bubble that started the worldwide collapse of the financial system. On Wednesday,...

Retail Sales in U.S. Rise; Rebound in Consumer Prices

Posted by David Stone on May 13th, 2017 // No Comments

Retail sales in the U.S. increased in April, while there was a rebound in consumer prices, pointing to an increase in economic growth and the gradual rise of inflation that might keep the U.S. Federal Reserve on its path to increase...

Jobs Market Rebounds, Adds Over 211,000 New Jobs

Posted by David Stone on May 5th, 2017 // No Comments

The U.S. jobs market rebounded during April amidst milder spring weather with employers adding 211,000 new jobs. This provided new evidence that March’s weakness was just a one-off incident and would not keep the U.S. Federal Reserve...

Governor Brown Signs Measure to Increase Gas Tax

Posted by David Stone on Apr 29th, 2017 // No Comments

In November, California drivers are going to see a hike in the price of gas and will be paying more to register vehicles starting in January after Governor Jerry Brown on Friday signed a new measure into law which is a tax hike annually...

Growth During First Quarter in U.S. Weakest in 36 Months

Posted by David Stone on Apr 28th, 2017 // No Comments

The economy in the U.S. expanded at the weakest pace in the past three years during the first three months of 2017 as spending by consumers was nearly flat and investments in inventories by businesses were down, in a possible setback...

China Lifts Global Outlook While Consumer Spending in U.S. Weakens

Posted by David Stone on Apr 17th, 2017 // No Comments

The economy in China returned with vengeance during the first three months of 2017, recording its first acceleration back to back in the past seven years and the global outlook for growth just when signs of reduced spending by consumers...

Manufacturing in UK Slows as Pressure Continues from Inflation

Posted by David Stone on Apr 3rd, 2017 // No Comments

Manufacturing in the UK unexpectedly cooled in March for the third month and might weaken even further, said IHS Markit, which repeated the warning it did last month related to inflationary pressures. Markit’s Purchasing Manager’s...

Economic Growth for Fourth Quarter Revised Up

Posted by David Stone on Mar 30th, 2017 // No Comments

Economic growth for the United States slowed down less than what was reported previously during the fourth quarter amidst strong spending by consumers that was met partially with an increase in imports. The gross domestic product or...

U.S. Adds 235,000 New Jobs in February

Posted by David Stone on Mar 10th, 2017 // No Comments

Employers during February added over 235,000 new jobs, said the Department of Labor on Friday. The hefty increase clears the way for the U.S. Federal Reserve to raise its interest rate during next week’s meeting. The jobless rate...

Donald Trump Tariffs Will Not Return Jobs to Rust Belt

Posted by David Stone on Nov 12th, 2016 // No Comments

Donald Trump the new President-elect has promised to return jobs to the Rust Belt of the U.S. by getting tough on China and Mexico. To accomplish that, he has threatened to use tariffs. The argument Trump gives is that if he makes...

Third Quarter China GDP Increases 6.7%

Posted by David Stone on Oct 19th, 2016 // No Comments

The economy in China grew at a steady rate of 6.7% during the third quarter. It appears the economy is ready to hit the target for a full year set by Beijing. It has been fueled through stronger spending by the government, record lending...

United States Adds 156,000 New Jobs During September

Posted by David Stone on Oct 7th, 2016 // No Comments

The economy of the U.S. delivered job growth considered moderate during September while wages increased suggesting the labor market remains steady as the Federal Reserve Bank moves nearer to increasing interest rates and the political...

Alaska Residents Unhappy with This Year’s Dividend

Posted by David Stone on Oct 3rd, 2016 // No Comments

Each year in October, Alaskans get what can be described as free money. However, that does not always mean all of them are happy about the check of $1,022 they will receive beginning this Thursday from the state’s wealth fund for...

Mexican Peso Indicates Donald Trump Lost First Debate

Posted by David Stone on Sep 27th, 2016 // No Comments

Financial markets did not waste any time in showing their verdict on the presidential debate Monday and Donald Trump did not end up doing that well. As Hillary Clinton spared with Trump on national television one key barometer financially...

U.S. Jobless Claims Drop to Lowest Number in Past Five Weeks

Posted by David Stone on Aug 25th, 2016 // No Comments

The number of people in the U.S. filing for unemployment benefits dropped to its lowest level for the past five weeks, another indication of the endurance the labor market continues to have. Jobless claims fell by over 1,000 to just...

Oregon Takes in Over $25.5 Million in Taxes on Marijuana Sales

Posted by David Stone on Aug 23rd, 2016 // No Comments

The medical marijuana dispensaries in Oregon have sold $102 million of recreational cannabis since the beginning of the year, when a 25% sales tax was imposed by the state on marijuana. The state collected close to $25.5 million in...

Productivity in the U.S. Fell for Another Quarter

Posted by David Stone on Aug 9th, 2016 // 1 Comment

Worker productivity in the U.S. has dropped during the spring making it the third consecutive quarter the rate has fallen, extending a stall in growth of labor productivity that is threatening to restrain the pay of workers and the...

Venezuela Selling Oil to Jamaica for Food

Posted by David Stone on Aug 3rd, 2016 // No Comments

Venezuela has started to sell Jamaica oil in exchange for food, farming materials, building supplies and medicine. Jamaica announced late last week that it was providing as much as $4 million worth of goods and services to Venezuela...

British Pound Worse Than Peso in Argentina

Posted by David Stone on Jul 10th, 2016 // No Comments

The British pound beat the peso in Argentina to a title, but it is one no one would want: the worst performing currency in the world. The pound plunged 14% versus the U.S. dollar since the vote in the United Kingdom on June 23 to leave...

Moody’s: Britain Now at Risk of Downgrade in Credit Rating

Posted by David Stone on Jun 25th, 2016 // No Comments

Moody’s, the ratings agency said that the creditworthiness of Britain was now a greater risk after its voters decided to exit the European Union, due to the country facing many more challenges to negotiate successfully its exit from...

Jobless Claims Decline in U.S. More Than Expected

Posted by David Stone on Jun 23rd, 2016 // No Comments

Fewer people in the U.S. than what had been forecasted filed for benefits from unemployment last week, which added to evidence the labor markets remained both stable and healthy. The jobless claims fell to 259,000, which was a drop...

Night Tube Beginning in London in August

Posted by David Stone on May 23rd, 2016 // No Comments

London Underground’s new Night Tube that has been long awaited is to be launched during August, close to a year later than originally planned. The new mayor of London Sadiq Khan confirmed that the 24-hour trains would begin on the...

Manufacturing Remains Weak in U.S., Labor Shows Its Strength

Posted by David Stone on Mar 24th, 2016 // No Comments

New orders for manufactured goods that are long-lasting in the U.S. fell during February as the industry continued struggling with the effects of a strong U.S. dollar and lower prices of oil. While other information Thursday showed...

President Obama Proposes Oil Barrel Tax To Help Invest in Clean Energy Development

Posted by admin on Feb 10th, 2016 // No Comments

President Obama has announced his fiscal 2017 plan which includes the proposal of a $10-per-barrel oil tax. The hope is to take advantage of falling oil prices and increase funding for alternative transportation research and development....

Slow Job Growth, But Higher Wages Could Be A Good Sign of Things To Come For Labor Market

Posted by admin on Feb 8th, 2016 // No Comments

The most recent labor report shows that the US added a meager 151,000 jobs in the first month of 2016. But while this number is underwhelming, it belies greater improvement in the labor market, at least partially offset by an unemployment...

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