By Ann Saphir and Jonathan Spicer (Reuters) – The beginning of the end of the Federal Reserve’s massive bond-buying program might come sooner than many investors think if recent gains in the U.S. labor market do not prove fleeting. Much will depend on how economic data, which has given mixed signals for growth prospects, develops [...]
By Jason Lange WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. economy showed fresh signs of slower growth in the second quarter, with factory activity slipping in the mid-Atlantic region while groundbreaking declined at home construction sites. Other data on Thursday showed a spike in new claims for jobless benefits last week as well as soft underlying inflation [...]
By Steven C. Johnson and Margaret Chadbourn NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – When David Pendery, a corporate public relations specialist, decided to move his family from Colorado to Illinois this year for work, his biggest worry was whether he would be able to sell his home quickly. It took just three days. "We certainly thought selling [...]
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama urged lawmakers on Saturday to back his nominee to oversee mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Democratic Representative Mel Watt. "Mel’s represented the people of North Carolina in Congress for 20 years, and in that time, he helped lead efforts to put in place rules of the road [...]
By Nishant Kumar and Elzio Barreto HONG KONG (Reuters) – As central banks print cash to boost moribund economies, investors in Asia wanting to hedge against rising prices are dumping gold and doubling down on property. They are driven by the search for yield as surprisingly benign inflation dims the appeal of bullion, but it’s [...]
By Lisa Lambert WASHINGTON (Reuters) – As they finalize budgets for the next fiscal year, many states are sending a message to the government about the effects of spending cuts known as sequestration on federally funded projects: You’re on your own. Since sequestration began on March 1, states have warned they would not step in [...]
By Andrea Hopkins TORONTO (Reuters) – It’s looking like an unsettling spring in Canadian housing, a market that has proven far more even-keeled and less scary for investors in recent years than in the United States. In what is traditionally the best season of the year for real estate agents, Toronto agent Ecko Jay says [...]
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Construction spending dropped to a seven-month low in March as public outlays recorded their largest drop since 2006, which could cause the first-quarter economic growth estimate to be trimmed. Construction spending fell 1.7 percent to an annual rate of $856.72 billion, the lowest level since August, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday. [...]
By Pedro da Costa and Alister Bull WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Federal Reserve said on Wednesday it will continue buying $85 billion in bonds each month to keep interest rates low and spur growth, and added it would step up purchases if needed to protect the economy. Expressing concern about a drag from Washington’s [...]
By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Consumer spending unexpectedly rose in March, temporarily boosted by demand for utilities due to colder weather, according to data on Monday that did little to alter a picture of a cooling in the economy. The Commerce Department said consumer spending advanced 0.2 percent last month after a 0.7 percent [...]
