With growth constrained by ongoing supply chain disruptions and labor shortages, the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book said Wednesday that U.S. economic activity expanded at a modest pace in the final weeks of 2021. The Beige Book, a compilation of anecdotal evidence on economic conditions in each of the twelve Fed districts, noted demand for materials, inputs and workers remained elevated […]

For our free coronavirus pandemic coverage, learn more here. The nature of global supply chains is so complex and multi-faceted that it is difficult to get a fix on just how disrupted they have been by the pandemic. We can see the end-result – the queues of container ships at ports, the empty shelves at supermarkets and other retailers, the […]

Private sector employment in the U.S. surged by much more than expected in the month of December, according to a report released by payroll processor ADP on Wednesday. ADP said private sector employment spiked by 807,000 jobs in December after jumping by a revised 505,000 jobs in November. Economists had expected private sector employment to increase by 400,000 jobs compared […]

The UK housing market may slow next year, after a stellar 2021, with the end of the stamp duty holiday and the threat posed to the labor market by the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, the Nationwide Building Society said Thursday. The house price index climbed 10.4 percent year-on-year in December after a 10.0 percent increase in the previous month, […]

Admitting that inflation remains a concern as it is by the build-up of cost-push pressures, Mr Das has called for stronger supply-side measures to contain food and energy prices Though the economy has steadily gained momentum and remained resilient since the second quarter of the current fiscal, the Omicron variant of coronavirus remains the major challenge along with rising inflation […]

New home sales in the U.S. rebounded strongly from a substantially downwardly revised level in the month of November, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Thursday. The Commerce Department said new home sales soared by 12.4 percent to an annual rate of 744,000 in November. However, the sharp increase came from a downwardly revised rate of […]

Car accidents killed 42,060 people last year, according to the National Safety Council (NSC). That is a rise from 39,107 the year before. Car accidents neared 6 million, and the cost of these accidents is close to $1 trillion. Several solutions to lower the number of accidents have been suggested. First is more effort to curb drunk driving. This has […]

Despite inflation concerns and ongoing production bottlenecks, the National Association of Home Builders released a report on Wednesday showing a modest improvement in U.S. homebuilder confidence in the month of December. The report said the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index inched up to 84 in December from 83 in November, reaching its highest level since a matching reading in February. […]

The Labor Department released a report on Tuesday showing U.S. producer prices increased by more than expected in the month of November. The report said the producer price index for final demand advanced by 0.8 percent in November after climbing by 0.6 percent in October. Economists had expected producer prices to rise by 0.5 percent. With the stronger than expected […]

Consumer sentiment in the U.S. unexpectedly improved in early December, according to preliminary data released by the University of Michigan on Friday. The report said the consumer sentiment index climbed to 70.4 in December after dropping to a ten-year low of 67.4 in November. The rebound surprised economists, who had expected the index to edge down to 67.1. Despite the […]