Jobless Rate Looks Like Old Times, but the Economy Doesn’t
[ad_1] The last time the unemployment rate fell below the 4 percent threshold was in 2000, during a period of frenetic activity remembered as the dot-com boom. Nine years into a sustained, if less feverish, economic recovery, that milestone has been achieved again. The Labor Department said Friday that the jobless rate in April fell to 3.9 percent, raising anew the question of just how tight the labor market can get, and for how long. In the past half-century, only the late 1960s brought an extended period when the rate stayed below 4 percent.…
Will the Fed Offer Clues About Rate Increases? Here’s What to Watch
[ad_1] Here is what to watch for on Wednesday afternoon. Are officials feeling pressure on inflation? Data released on Monday showed that wages and prices are now growing at 2 percent a year, according to the Fed’s preferred inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures price index. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, the rate is 1.9 percent. Those levels are important because they indicate inflation is finally reaching the 2 percent level that the Fed has explicitly targeted, after six years of failing to meet that …
Social Plugin