U.S. retail sales ease fears over economy; rate cut still seen
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. retail sales increased more than expected in June, pointing to strong consumer spending, which could help to blunt some of the drag on the economy from…
Fed’s Powell affirms rate cut view; others see U.S. economy humming
ATLANTA/VICTOR, Idaho (Reuters) – As Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell kept the focus Thursday on global risks that could trigger a Fed rate cut in coming weeks, his colleagues from…
Fed faces tougher task in deciding whether to cut U.S. rates
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. employers are hiring workers, but that is only making the Federal Reserve’s job harder. On Friday, the Labor Department said nonfarm employers added 224,000 jobs…
Buoyant U.S. stocks at odds with downbeat market signals
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Even as record highs this week in the major U.S. stock indexes telegraph confidence on Wall Street, caution abounds in other U.S. markets, where falling bond…
Fed officials face weak inflation, but split over what it means
WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – U.S. Federal Reserve officials were divided Friday over how seriously to treat a slide in inflation, with one top policymaker saying the Fed was “close” to…
Take Five: The Fed and the rest
With President Donald Trump’s trade policies heightening fears of a U.S. recession, expectations of a Fed rate cut have dramatically increased in the past month. Money market pricing became even…
Weak U.S. employment report raises red flag on economy
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. job growth slowed sharply in May and wages rose less than expected, raising fears that a loss of momentum in economic activity could be spreading to…
Fed’s patience on interest rates to last ‘for some time’
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Federal Reserve officials at their last meeting agreed that their current patient approach to setting monetary policy could remain in place “for some time,” a further…
Mixed data offer glimmers of hope for slowing U.S. economy
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. retail sales unexpectedly fell in February, but a rebound in factory activity in March and strong increase in construction spending offered hope the economy was not…
Wall Street powers world stocks; dollar up on Brexit woes
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Wall Street led global stocks higher on Thursday on the back of upbeat economic data, while the dollar rallied despite the Federal Reserve’s uber-dovish stance as…