Americans’ attitudes toward the economy hold steady despite disappointing inflation reports
CNN
Americans haven’t felt any better about the economy these past few months, but they haven’t felt any worse either. That’s striking because disappointing inflation reports have thrown Wall Street into a tailspin.
Americans haven’t felt any better about the economy these past few months, but they haven’t felt any worse either. That’s striking because disappointing inflation reports have thrown Wall Street into a tailspin. The University of Michigan’s latest consumer survey showed that sentiment largely held steady in April, according to a preliminary reading, edging lower to a reading of 77.9 from 79.4. Sentiment is well above the record lows seen in the summer of 2022, when inflation reached 40-year highs, though it remains below pre-pandemic levels. “Sentiment moved sideways for the fourth straight month, as consumers perceived few meaningful developments in the economy,” said Joanne Hsu, the university’s Surveys of Consumers director, in a release. “Overall, consumers are reserving judgment about the economy in light of the upcoming election, which, in the view of many consumers, could have a substantial impact on the trajectory of the economy,” she added. Meanwhile, US consumers’ expectations of inflation rates remains mostly in check, ticking up only slightly in April. The Federal Reserve cares whether or not Americans have faith that inflation will eventually return to levels they’re used to. Still, firmer-than-expected inflation readings did have some impact on Americans’ perceptions, albeit modest. “Greater dissatisfaction with the pace of disinflation weighed on consumers’ assessments of current and future economic conditions. This is partly due to higher gasoline prices, but also the slower broader progress as seen in the recent CPI reports,” Oren Klachkin, financial market economist at Nationwide, said in a note Friday.
Last-minute errands always seem to pop up on Christmas and Christmas Eve, whether it’s buying a quick present or picking up one last ingredient.
King Charles III has ended royal warrants for Cadbury and Unilever, which owns brands including Marmite and Ben & Jerry’s, in a blow to the household names.
While businesses across the US are fretting that President-elect Donald Trump’s threat of new tariffs could mean a massive hit to their bottom lines, at least one industry is gearing up for the exact opposite.
Back in 2022, when the labor market was so hot that Beyoncé even released a song about it, Americans were job hopping in large numbers, boosting their salary in the process.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has steered the world’s most powerful central bank during a tumultuous period for the US economy, from the pandemic to a historic bout of inflation shortly after.
Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp has agreed to sell its Australian cable TV unit Foxtel to British-owned sports network DAZN for 3.4 billion Australian dollars ($2.1 billion) including debt, cutting the media empire’s exposure to a business upended by streaming platforms.
Japanese automakers Honda and Nissan have announced plans to join forces, forming world’s third-largest automaker by sales as the industry undergoes dramatic changes in its transition away from fossil fuels.
The strike protests a lack of contract negotiations, including wage increases for union baristas.
This year was brutal for a number of well-known companies, including Red Lobster, True Value and Big Lots.
Last-minute holiday shoppers may want to give their digital carts a hard look, as Amazon workers remain on strike on the final weekend before Christmas.
Campaigners have accused Facebook parent Meta of inflicting “potentially lifelong trauma” on hundreds of content moderators in Kenya, after more than 140 were diagnosed with PTSD and other mental health conditions.