The proposed budget by the United States President Joe Biden will increase the ratio of the public debt to the gross domestic product (GDP), Secretary of the Treasury, Janet Yellen, said on Thursday. However, the budget will not add extra pressures on the inflation rate, Yellen noted. Speaking to a …
Read More »Biden Administration Closely Monitoring Inflation – Yellen
The United States Secretary of the Treasury, Janet Yellen, said on Thursday that the recent rise in inflation will most likely be temporary, with the economy still recovering from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. She further told Congress that the administration of President Joe Biden, as well as U.S. regulators, are …
Read More »U.S. Capital Goods Orders Rise in April
U.S. new capital goods orders rose in April more than expected, as businesses recover from the coronavirus pandemic, data showed on Thursday. Orders increased by 2.3% last month, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. On an annual basis, the rise was by 14.7%. Core capital goods shipments also grew …
Read More »Pending Home Sales Decline in April
The United States Pending Home Sales Index declined by 4.4% on a monthly basis in April, data showed on Thursday. The decrease resulted from a record-low supply of homes available for sale during the first quarter of the year, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). This comes against …
Read More »Yellen: Biden Budget to Raise Debt-to-GDP Ratio
The proposed budget by the United States President Joe Biden will increase the ratio of the public debt to the gross domestic product (GDP), Secretary of the Treasury, Janet Yellen, said on Thursday. However, the budget will not add extra pressures on the inflation rate, Yellen noted. Speaking to a …
Read More »U.S. Mortgage Applications Decline 4.2%
Mortgage applications in the United States declined last week, despite the remaining historically low interest rates, data showed on Wednesday. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index fell by 4.2% in the week ended May 21 on a weekly basis, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). Data showed a 7.2% decrease …
Read More »U.S. House Prices Rise in Q1 – FHFA
House prices in the United States rose by 12.6% in the first quarter (Q1) of 2021, compared with the Q1 of 2020, data showed on Tuesday. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) House Price Index (HPI) rose by 3.5% compared to Q4 of 2020. Meanwhile, FHFA’s seasonally adjusted monthly index …
Read More »U.S. Consumer Confidence Declines Marginally in May
The U.S. consumer confidence held steady in May, after rising in April, data by the Conference Board showed on Tuesday. The Consumer Confidence Index reached 117.2, compared with 117.5 in April. Meanwhile, the Present Situation Index rose from 131.9 to 144.3. As for the Expectations Index, it registered a decline …
Read More »Tech Companies Take Center Stage in Today’s News
A number of news reports and stories by major international media outlets on Monday shined a light on the rising importance of technology companies in the world economy, as well as their intersection with the issues of privacy and political conflicts. In India, the police announced that they visited a …
Read More »U.S. Business Borrowing Rises 19% in April
Borrowing for capital investments by companies in the United States amounted to $9.8 billion in April, increasing by 19% on an annual basis, according to data by the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA) released on Tuesday. The surge in borrowing by U.S. companies came amid the recovery from the …
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