US wholesale prices up a hotter-than-expected 0.4% in December

WASHINGTON — U.S. wholesale prices came in hotter than expected last month at a time when progress against inflation appears to have stalled, undercutting expectations for lower interest rates this year. The Labor Department reported Thursday that its producer price index — which tracks inflation before it reaches consumers — rose 0.4% from December and […]

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Senate Finance Committee approves Jamieson Greer, Trump’s choice to be top U.S. trade negotiator

WASHINGTON — The Senate Finance Committee approved President Donald Trump’s choice to be America’s top trade negotiator Wednesday, largely along party lines. Jamieson Greer, an attorney and trade official in Trump’s first term, was cleared by the panel 15-12. All Republicans on the committee but just one Democrat – Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island […]

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Trump slaps taxes on foreign steel, aluminum, a move that proved costly in first term

WASHINGTON — WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is hitting foreign steel and aluminum with a 25% tax. If that sounds familiar, it’s because he did pretty much the same thing during his first term. Trump’s original metals tariffs gave America’s struggling steel and aluminum producers some relief from intense global competition, allowing them to […]

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US job market likely began the year strong, but faces cloudier future

WASHINGTON — The U.S. labor market probably started 2025 the way it spent most of last year: Generating decent, but unspectacular, job growth. When the Labor Department releases January employment numbers Friday, they’re likely to show that companies, government agencies and nonprofits added 170,000 jobs last month, according to a survey of economists by the […]

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US job openings fall to 7.6 million in December, suggesting the job market is slowing but healthy

U.S. job openings fell in December, a sign that the labor market is cooling but still healthy. Openings fell to 7.6 million, from 8.2 million in November, the Labor Department reported Tuesday. They were down from 8.9 million a year earlier and a peak of 12.2 million in March 2022 when the economy was rebounding […]

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From avocados to autos, Trump tariffs on Canada and Mexico could hit close to home

WASHINGTON — The 25% tax that President Donald Trump plans to slap on imports from Canada and Mexico as soon as Saturday could drive up the price of everything from gasoline and pickup trucks, to Super Bowl party guacamole dip. The tariffs would also invite retaliation. Doug Ford, the premier of Ontario, has already vowed […]

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US producer prices rose 0.2% last month on higher energy costs

WASHINGTON — U.S. wholesale inflation rose last month on higher energy prices. The Labor Department reported Tuesday that its producer price index — which tracks inflation before it hits consumers — rose 0.2% last month from November, down from a 0.4% gain the month before. Compared to a year earlier, producer prices were up 3.3%, […]

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Average 30-year mortgage rate hits 6.91%, Freddie Mac says, the highest since July

WASHINGTON — U.S. mortgage rates rose this week to the highest level since July. The benchmark 30-year fixed rate loan rate rose to 6.91% from 6.85% last week, according to mortgage giant Freddie Mac. It was at 6.62% a year ago. The uptick in the cost of home loans reflects a rise in the bond […]

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US unemployment claims fall to the lowest level since March

WASHINGTON — The number of Americans applying for unemployment checks dropped last week to the lowest level since March, suggesting that suggest most workers enjoy unusual job security. Jobless claims dropped by 9,000 to 211,000 last week, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The four-week average of claims, which strips out week-to-week ups and downs, fell […]

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Jet crash disaster in South Korea marks another setback for Boeing

WASHINGTON — A machinists strike. Another safety problem involving its troubled top-selling airliner. A plunging stock price. 2024 was already a dispiriting year for Boeing, the American aviation giant. But when one of the company’s jets crash-landed in South Korea on Sunday, killing all but two of the 181 people on board, it brought to […]

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