US recession fears are rising, but here’s why it may not be too hard a landing this time

US recession fears are rising, but here’s why it may not be too hard a landing this time

Turmoil in the markets has renewed fears that the US did not escape history after all, that a hard landing — a recession — is coming. Whether this is all a blip from a rising yen or a justified reaction to an actual weakening of the US economy is still unknowable. But there are reasons … Read more

Fed rate cuts: Will US Federal Reserve make any out of turn rate cuts? Arnab Das answers

Fed rate cuts: Will US Federal Reserve make any out of turn rate cuts? Arnab Das answers

“I do not think that is the only thing that is going on. Though, I think what has happened here is the market was extremely buoyant and arguably priced for something approaching perfection when it got a bit of a wake-up call that the economy was slowing down from last Friday’s non-farm payrolls number in … Read more

America’s debt crisis is getting too big to solve?

America’s debt crisis is getting too big to solve?

Fiscal conservatism has more or less vanished from America’s political landscape. Government borrowing, despite the strong economy, continues to push public debt to record levels – and the presidential contenders and their parties say scarcely a word about it. To the extent they discuss economic policy at all, their intentions on taxes and public spending … Read more

nikkei today: Japan’s Nikkei 225 index plunges nearly 7% as global sell-offs resume

nikkei today: Japan’s Nikkei 225 index plunges nearly 7% as global sell-offs resume

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 stock index plunged 6.7% early Monday before recovering some lost ground, extending sell-offs that began last week. The Nikkei had shed more than 2,400 points to 33,488.08 about a half-hour after opening. By about an hour after trading began, the index was down 5.3%, or about 1,900 points, at 34,010.69. Stocks … Read more

US inflation cools in May; consumer spending rises moderately

US inflation cools in May; consumer spending rises moderately

U.S. prices were unchanged in May while consumer spending rose moderately, a trend that could draw the Federal Reserve closer to start cutting interest rates this year. The flat reading in the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index last month followed an unrevised 0.3% gain in April, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis said … Read more

Should Joe Biden downplay his own success?

Should Joe Biden downplay his own success?

The performance of America’s economy over the past two years has been remarkable, especially given the dire predictions of many observers. Remember the economists who forecast a recession in 2023? Remember all those warnings that getting inflation down would require years of high unemployment? Instead, our economic growth has been the envy of other wealthy … Read more

US inflation rises in line with expectations in March

US inflation rises in line with expectations in March

U.S. inflation rose moderately in March, but that is unlikely to change financial markets’ expectations that the Federal Reserve will hold off cutting interest rates until September. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index increased 0.3% last month, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis said on Friday. Data for February was unrevised to show … Read more

US growth slowed sharply last quarter to 1.6 per cent pace, reflecting an economy pressured by high rates

US growth slowed sharply last quarter to 1.6 per cent pace, reflecting an economy pressured by high rates

The nation’s economy slowed last quarter, growing at an annual rate of 1.6 per cent in a sign that the high interest rates may be taking a toll on borrowing and spending. Thursday’s report from the Commerce Department said the gross domestic product – the economy’s total output of goods and services – decelerated from … Read more

US manufacturing output increases in March; February data revised higher

US manufacturing output increases in March; February data revised higher

Production at U.S. factories increased solidly in March as output at motor vehicle assembly plants and elsewhere rose, suggesting that manufacturing was turning the corner after being constrained by higher borrowing costs. Manufacturing output rose 0.5% last month after an upwardly revised 1.2% rebound in the prior month, the Federal Reserve said on Tuesday. Factory … Read more

Factories around the world are slowly cranking into gear again

Factories around the world are slowly cranking into gear again

Assembly lines around the world are starting to hum again, marking a turn in a years-long manufacturing slump. The nascent industrial recovery is led by the world’s two biggest economies. Chinese manufacturing has made a strong start to the year, boosting the economic outlook, and US factory activity unexpectedly expanded last month for the first … Read more