Economy

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Vermont farmer Brian Kemp is used to seeing the pastures at Mountain Meadows Farm grow slower in the hot, late summer, but this year the grass is at a standstill. That's “very nerve-wracking” when you're grazing... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats pushed their flagship climate change and health care bill toward House passage Friday, placing President Joe Biden on the brink of a back-from-the-dead triumph on his leading domestic goals that could energize his party going into November’s elections. Democrats were poised... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Prices at the wholesale level fell from June to July, the first month-to-month drop in more than two years and a sign that some of the U.S. economy's inflationary pressures cooled last month. Thursday’s report from the Labor Department... Read More

AP -- Gasoline prices dipped to just under the $4 mark for the first time in more than five months — good news for consumers who are struggling with high prices for many other essentials. AAA said the national average... Read More

Republican politicians and candidates are distorting how a major economic bill passed over the weekend by the Senate would reform the IRS and affect taxes for the middle class. The “ Inflation Reduction Act,” which awaits a House vote after passing in the Senate on... Read More

WASHINGTON — The Consumer Price Index was unchanged in July, a sign that rapidly declining gas prices are beginning to offset the pressures that led to a monthslong surge in inflation. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats have agreed to eleventh-hour changes to their marquee economic legislation, they announced late Thursday, clearing the major impediment to pushing one of President Joe Biden’s paramount election-year priorities through the chamber in coming days. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema,... Read More

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden will sign the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 into law next Tuesday in a Rose Garden ceremony, the White House has announced. Supporters of H.R. 4346 touted the legislation as a vehicle for lowering... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jerome Powell delivered a tough message at the start of a news conference Wednesday: Inflation is way too high, and the Federal Reserve is laser-focused on taming it with higher borrowing costs. Yet despite his resolute words, the Fed... Read More

NEW YORK (AP) — Ah, the bacon, egg and cheese. The classic bodega breakfast sandwich is a staple in many a New Yorker's diet. It's easy to make, easy to eat on the go and cheap — although not as... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is warning that Democrats’ plans to curb drug prices would insert “socialist price controls" between Americans and the treatments they need as partisan battle lines form over a shrunken economic package that President Joe... Read More

NEW YORK (AP) — Consumers picked up their spending from May to June, underscoring their resilience despite painfully higher prices at the gas pump and in grocery aisles and allaying fears that the economy might be on the verge of a recession.... Read More

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture is taking steps to reduce the economic risks associated with so-called double cropping, or raising two crops on the same land in one year.  Working with its Risk Management Agency, the USDA is... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Surging prices for gas, food and rent catapulted U.S. inflation to a new four-decade peak in June, further pressuring households and likely sealing the case for another large interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve, with higher borrowing... Read More

NEW YORK — Though there has been some improvement in the metrics used to measure inflation, a slowing U.S. manufacturing sector among other factors suggests the risk of a looming recession continues to be strong, according to an economist with... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — A measure of inflation that is closely tracked by the Federal Reserve jumped 6.3% in May from a year earlier, unchanged from its level in April. Thursday's report from the Commerce Department provided the latest evidence that... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer Americans applied for jobless benefits last week as the U.S. job market remains robust despite four-decade high inflation and a myriad of other economic pressures. Applications for jobless aid for the week ending June 18 fell... Read More

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Thursday called on Congress to suspend the federal tax on gas and diesel for three months to provide some relief to soaring inflation and surging prices at the pump. The federal gas tax holiday... Read More

NEW YORK (AP) — Markets worldwide are back to tumbling on Thursday, and Wall Street is down roughly 3% in a widespread wipeout as worries about a fragile economy roar back to the fore. The S&P 500 was 3.1% lower... Read More

President Joe Biden on Wednesday called on U.S. oil refiners to produce more gasoline and diesel, saying their profits have tripled during a time of war between Russia and Ukraine as Americans struggle with record high prices at the pump. “The crunch that families... Read More

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is wobbling between gains and losses Tuesday in its first trading after tumbling into a bear market on worries about a fragile economy and rising rates. The S&P 500 was 0.1% higher in early trading after... Read More

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is tumbling even more Monday, sending the S&P 500 down more than 20% from its record, amid fears that a recession is more likely given how unshakeable inflation has become. The S&P 500 was... Read More

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. markets appeared to be headed for gains Thursday with European Central Bank announcing its first interest rate hike in 11 years. The bank will make two quarter-point increases, with the second arriving in September. The surprise decision... Read More

WASHINGTON — The New Democrat Coalition released an Inflation Action Plan Wednesday, urging their colleagues in Congress and the Biden administration to take further, pragmatic steps to ease the financial pressures on American families.   In doing so, the coalition acknowledged... Read More

WASHINGTON — A panel of the nation’s top bank economists sees the U.S. economy continuing to expand through 2024, though at a slower pace than its long-term potential. Perhaps of even greater interest to U.S. consumers at the moment, the... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers added a healthy 390,000 jobs in May, extending a streak of solid hiring that has bolstered an economy under pressure from high inflation and interest rates. Last month’s gain reflects a still-healthy job market despite... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer Americans applied for jobless aid last week with the number of Americans collecting unemployment at historically low levels. Applications for unemployment benefits fell by 11,000 to 200,000 for the week ending May 28, the Labor Department... Read More

U.S. markets rose modestly ahead of the opening bell Wednesday and the price for a barrel of oil resumed an upward trajectory after the European Union this week blocked most oil imports from Russia. Futures for the S&P 500 gained... Read More

WASHINGTON  — As president, Joe Biden has shepherded the economy’s recovery from an unforeseen global pandemic, kick-started long needed infrastructure repairs all across the nation, and seen the unemployment rate drop to 3.6% on his watch — nearly the lowest... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is set to meet with Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell as soaring inflation takes a bite out of Americans' pocketbooks and the president's public approval. Tuesday's meeting is the first since Biden renominated Powell to lead the... Read More