Fewer Americans File for Jobless Aid
U.S. Produce Prices Up 8.3% in August From a Year Earlier
September 10, 2021by Paul Wiseman, AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation at the wholesale level climbed 8.3% last month from August 2020, the biggest annual gain since the Labor Department started calculating the 12-month number in 2010.
The Labor Department reported Friday that its producer price index — which measures inflationary pressures before they reach consumers — rose 0.7% last month after increasing 1% in both June and July.
Inflation has been stirring as the economy recovers from last year’s brief but intense coronavirus recession. Supply chain bottlenecks and a shortage of workers have pushed prices higher.
Excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core producer prices rose 0.6% from July and 6.7% from a year earlier. Food prices were up 2.9% last month after falling in July.
The economy’s brisk recovery appears to have hit a late summer lull as COVID-19’s highly contagious delta variant discourages Americans from shopping in stores or going out to restaurants. Retail sales dropped in August, and employers added just 235,000 jobs last month, a third of what economists were expecting, and a sharp drop from June and July, when about 1 million jobs were added each month.
The Labor Department’s report on August consumer prices comes out Tuesday. Economists expect them to have moderated slightly from July’s 5.4% annual uptick, according to a survey by the data firm FactSet.
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by Fewer Americans File for Jobless Aid
Fewer Americans File for Jobless Aid
WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer Americans applied for jobless benefits last week as the U.S. job market remains robust despite four-decade... 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 to 229,000, a decline of 2,000... Read More
June 22, 2022
by Dan McCue
Biden Calls for ‘Gas Tax Holiday’ in Bid to Knee-Cap Inflation Woes
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Thursday called on Congress to suspend the federal tax on gas and diesel for... 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 the president is seeking would suspend... Read More
Wall Street Gets Back to Tumbling After 1-Day Reprieve
NEW YORK (AP) — Markets worldwide are back to tumbling on Thursday, and Wall Street is down roughly 3% in... Read More
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Biden Tells Oil Refiners: Produce More Gas, Fewer Profits
President Joe Biden on Wednesday called on U.S. oil refiners to produce more gasoline and diesel, saying their profits have tripled during... 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 are facing deserves immediate action,” Biden... Read More
Wall Street Wobbles a Day After Tumbling Into Bear Market
NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is wobbling between gains and losses Tuesday in its first trading after tumbling into... 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 a couple big companies flexed financial... Read More
Markets Tumble Worldwide, Bear Market Growls on Wall Street
NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is tumbling even more Monday, sending the S&P 500 down more than 20% from... 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 2.7% lower in the first trading... Read More
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