US Economy Archives - Page 3 of 4

Stock market today: Wall Street falls from its records as oil prices tumble and tech stocks drop

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are edging back from their records as the price of crude oil tumbles again. The S&P 500 slipped 0.3% in midday trading Thursday, a day after setting an all-time high for the 46th time this year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 77 points, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.8%. Exxon Mobil and other energy stocks sank to some of the market’s worst losses as oil prices dropped again. Chip stocks fell after supplier ASML warned of a slower recovery outside of the AI boom. Treasury yields eased as trading for U.S. bonds resumed following a holiday.… Continue Reading

Walgreens to close 1,200 US stores as chain attempts to steady operations at home

Walgreens plans to close about 1,200 locations over the next three years as the drugstore chain seeks to turnaround its struggling U.S. business. The company said Tuesday that about 500 store closures will happen in its current fiscal year and should immediately help adjusted earnings and free cash flow. Walgreens leaders said in late June that they were finalizing a turnaround plan for its U.S. business, and that push could result in the closing of hundreds of underperforming stores. The company has been struggling for years with tight reimbursement for the prescriptions it sells as well as other challenges.… Continue Reading

Stock market today: Wall Street edges back from its records

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks edged back from their record highs. The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% Thursday, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.1% after likewise setting an all-time high the day before. The Nasdaq composite edged down by 0.1%. In the bond market, Treasury yields swung after a pair of disappointing reports showed inflation failed to improve as much as expected last month and more workers filed for unemployment benefits last week. They left investors questioning how much the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by at its next meeting. Crude oil prices rose to regain their losses from early in the week.… Continue Reading

Stock market today: Wall Street sets more records after Shanghai’s worst drop since early COVID

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rose to records after the latest wild swerves for Chinese stocks left few ripples in markets worldwide. The S&P 500 climbed 0.7% Wednesday to top the all-time high it set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 431 points to hit its own record, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.6%. The relatively calm movements on Wall Street followed another manic day in China. Stocks in Shanghai tumbled to their worst loss since February 2020 amid disappointment that the government is not offering more stimulus for the world’s second-largest economy. Oil prices eased, and Treasury yields rose.… Continue Reading

US adds a robust 254,000 jobs and unemployment dips to 4.1% in sign of still-sturdy labor market

WASHINGTON (AP) — America’s employers added a surprisingly strong 254,000 jobs in September, easing concerns about a weakening labor market and suggesting that the pace of hiring is still solid enough to support a growing economy. Last month’s gain was far more than economists had expected, and it was up sharply from the 159,000 jobs that were added in August. And after rising for most of 2024, the unemployment rate dropped for a second straight month, from 4.2% in August to 4.1% in September. The latest figures suggest that many companies are still confident enough to fill jobs despite the continued pressure of high interest rates. Few employers are laying off workers, though many have grown more cautious about hiring.… Continue Reading

Dockworkers go on a strike that could reignite inflation and cause shortages in the holiday season

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Dockworkers at ports from Maine to Texas have started walking picket lines in a strike over wages and automation that could reignite inflation and cause shortages of goods if it goes on more than a few weeks. The contract between the ports and about 45,000 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association expired at midnight, and even though progress was reported in talks on Monday, the workers went on strike early Tuesday. The strike is affecting 36 ports. The U.S. Maritime Alliance represents the ports and said Monday evening that both sides had moved off of their previous wage offers, but when picket lines went up it was apparent there was no deal.… Continue Reading

Fed Chair Powell says the US economy is in ‘solid shape’ with more rate cuts coming

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has signaled that more rate cuts are in the pipeline, though their size and speed will depend on the evolution of the economy. At their last meeting, Fed officials penciled in two more quarter-point rate cuts to be made at the central bank’s final meetings this year. In remarks Monday before the National Association for Business Economics in Nashville, Tennessee, Powell said the economy and hiring are largely healthy. He emphasized that the Fed is recalibrating its key interest rate, which is now at about 4.8%.… Continue Reading

Stock market today: Wall Street ticks to another record as stocks worldwide rally

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rose to another record as financial markets around the world rallied again. The S&P 500 added 0.4% Thursday to set an all-time high for the third time this week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.6%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.6%. Micron Technology led the way after the maker of computer memory and storage delivered stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. That helped offset drops for oil-and-gas companies, which sank as the price of crude tumbled. Stock markets overseas climbed on hopes for additional stimulus from China for the world’s second-largest economy.… Continue Reading

Diners are skipping restaurants and making more meals at home as inflation trend inverts

NEW YORK (AP) — Eating in is in and eating out is out. That’s the message that inflation-squeezed consumers have been sending to fast-food companies and other restaurants. Meanwhile food producers are benefitting from more palatable prices in grocery store aisles. Inflation has been easing broadly for more than a year, and it’s been cooling faster for grocery items since the middle of the year. The current trend marks a reversal from previous years when grocery inflation outpaced restaurants as food producers raised prices, often while fattening their profit margins.… Continue Reading

US economy grew at a solid 3% rate last quarter, government says in final estimate

WASHINGTON (AP) — The American economy expanded at a healthy 3% annual pace from April through June, boosted by strong consumer spending and business investment, the government said, leaving its previous estimate unchanged. The nation’s gross domestic product — the nation’s total output of goods and services — picked up sharply in the second quarter from the tepid 1.6% annual rate in the first three months of the year. Consumer spending, the primary driver of the economy, grew last quarter at a 2.8% pace, down slightly from the 2.9% rate the government had previously estimated. The final GDP estimate for the April-June quarter included figures showing that inflation continues to ease, to just above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target.… Continue Reading