U.S. employers added 517,000 jobs in January, as the unemployment rate fell to 3.4% . The job market remains tight, despite signs of a slowing economy.
The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by a quarter-percentage point as part of its ongoing effort to fight inflation. Price hikes have begun to ease, but the Fed says inflation is not yet tamed.
The U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 2.9% in the final three months of last year — a surprisingly strong finish. But growth is expected to slow in 2023, and possibly even reverse.
Annual inflation continued to ease, cooling to 6.5% in December, but prices are still climbing at a rapid rate, meaning people have to work longer and harder to keep the same standard of living.
More Americans are leaning on their credit cards to cope with rising prices. And as interest rates continue to climb, that debt is getting more and more expensive.
Partridge prices were flat this year, but the cost of pear trees jumped more than 25%. PNC bank has run the numbers on all 12 days of Christmas, as it calculates its annual holiday price index.
Inflation may be slowing, but prices are still climbing much faster than Americans are used to. The Federal Reserve's dramatic steps to bring it to heel appear to be working - somewhat.
A new government report shows inflation cooled a bit in November. But prices are still climbing and the Federal Reserve is preparing to raise interest rates again.
Hiring slowed slightly in November amid rising interest rates. But the U.S. job market remains unusually tight. Employers added 263,000 jobs in November while unemployment held steady at 3.7%.
With Thanksgiving just two weeks away, food and family are on many people's minds. But turkey and travel will carry a hefty price tag this year. The annual inflation rate in October was 7.7%.
The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by another 0.75 percentage points Wednesday, as part of its ongoing effort to fight inflation. The big question is, what happens next.