RALEIGH, N.C. (WPTF) — While the national economy shows signs of slowing, North Carolina remains in good shape, according to N.C. State University Economist Emeritus Dr. Mike Walden. Walden, the guest on this week’s Carolina Newsmakers, said tracking the effectiveness of tariffs is challenging and most economists did not expect the U.S. to be in its current position. He noted that President Donald Trump’s administration has taken a new approach to trade policy.… Continue Reading
Stocks rose on Wall Street, marking their third winning week in the last four. The S&P 500 rose 0.8% Friday, leaving the index just shy of the record it set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite added 1% to the record it set a day earlier. Expedia and Gilead Sciences rose sharply after reporting results that easily beat analysts’ forecasts. Both companies also raised their outlooks. Asian markets closed mostly lower except in Tokyo, where the Nikkei rose 1.9%. European markets were mixed. Treasury yields rose in the bond market.… Continue Reading
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks drifted to a mixed finish as President Donald Trump’s tariffs on dozens of countries had only a muted effect on markets worldwide. The S&P 500 slipped 0.1% Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.3% to a record. Worries are high that Trump’s tariffs are damaging the economy, particularly after last week’s worse-than-expected report on the job market. But hopes for coming cuts to interest rates by the Federal Reserve and a torrent of stronger-than-expected profit reports from big U.S. companies are helping to offset the concerns, at least for now. Treasury yields ticked higher.… Continue Reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — Apple CEO Tim Cook is joining President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday to announce a commitment by the tech company to increase its investment in U.S. manufacturing by an additional $100 billion over the next four years. As part of the Apple announcement, the investments will be about bringing more of its supply chain and advanced manufacturing to the United States as part of an initiative called the American Manufacturing Program, but it is not a full commitment to build its popular iPhone device domestically.… Continue Reading
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes slipped following the latest discouraging signal on the U.S. economy. The S&P 500 fell 0.5% Tuesday, coming off a whipsaw stretch where it followed its worst day since May with its best since May. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.7%. A weaker-than-expected report on activity for U.S. services businesses added to worries that President Donald Trump’s tariffs may be hurting the economy. But hopes for coming cuts to interest rates by the Federal Reserve, along with a stream of stronger-than-expected profit reports from U.S. companies, helped keep the losses in check.… Continue Reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — The monthly jobs report is already closely-watched on Wall Street and in Washington but has taken on a new importance after President Donald Trump on Friday fired the official who oversees it. Trump claimed that June’s employment figures were “RIGGED” to make him and other Republicans “look bad” yet provided no evidence. The firing of the Bureau of Labor Statistics director followed Friday’s jobs report that showed hiring was weak in July and had come to nearly a standstill in May and June. Economists and Wall Street investors have long considered the job figures reliable. Friday’s revisions were unusually large, and the surveys used to compile the report are facing challenges from declining response rates. But that hasn’t led most economists to doubt them.… Continue Reading
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rallied and won back most of their sharp loss from last week. The S&P 500 jumped 1.5% Monday to follow up its worst day since May with its best since May. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 585 points, or 1.3%, and the Nasdaq composite leaped 2%. Gains for Tyson Foods and other companies following their better-than-expected profit reports helped offset a drop for Berkshire Hathaway. This upcoming week may have fewer fireworks on Wall Street than last week, which was punctuated by a disappointingly weak report on the U.S. job market.… Continue Reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Friday that he has directed his team to fire the head of the agency that produces the monthly jobs figures, after a weak report showed hiring slowed and was much weaker in April and May than previously reported. Trump in a post on his social media platform alleged that the figures were manipulated for political reasons and said that Erika McEntarfer, the director of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, should be fired.… Continue Reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Friday that he has directed his team to fire the head of the agency that produces the monthly jobs figures, after a weak report showed hiring slowed and was much weaker in April and May than previously reported. Trump in a post on his social media platform alleged that the figures were manipulated for political reasons and said that Erika McEntarfer, the director of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, should be fired.… Continue Reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says there will be a 90-day negotiating period with Mexico over trade as 25% tariffs stay in place. Trump posted online Thursday a phone conversation with Claudia Sheinbaum was “very successful in that, more and more,” they’re “getting to know and understand each other.” Trump says goods from Mexico imported into the U.S. will continue to face a 25% tariff he has ostensibly linked to fentanyl trafficking. The Republican president says autos face a 25% tariff, while copper, aluminum and steel are taxed at 50%. Trump had threatened tariffs of 30% on goods from Mexico, something Sheinbaum says Mexico gets to stave off for the next three months.… Continue Reading