Category: Business

US Consumer Spending Decreases Further; Inflation Creeping Up

WASHINGTON—U.S. consumer spending fell for a second straight month in December amid renewed business restrictions to slow the spread of COVID-19 and a temporary expiration of government-funded benefits for millions of unemployed Americans. The report from the Commerce Department on Friday also showed inflation steadily rising last month. Expectations that inflation would perk up this…


US Consumer Spending Slumps Further; Inflation Creeping Higher

WASHINGTON—U.S. consumer spending fell for a second straight month in December amid renewed business restrictions to slow the spread of COVID-19 and a temporary expiration of government-funded benefits for millions of unemployed Americans. The report from the Commerce Department on Jan. 29 also showed inflation steadily rising in December. Expectations that inflation would perk up…


Toys R Us Retrenches Again, Shutters Its Last 2 US Stores

NEW YORK—Toys R Us is retrenching once again. The only two Toys R Us stores that opened in November 2019 as part of a small U.S. comeback attempt by the iconic toy chain have now closed. The Toys R Us store at the Galleria mall in Houston shuttered on Jan. 15, while one at the…


US Contract Signings to Buy Homes Hits Record for December

SILVER SPRING, Md.—The number of Americans who signed contracts to buy homes declined slightly for the fourth straight month, but it was still a record high for December. The National Association of Realtors’ index of pending home sales dipped 0.3 percent to 125.5 in December, an all-time high, according to the Friday report. An index…


US Home Contract Signings Set Record High for December

SILVER SPRING, Md.—The number of Americans who signed contracts to buy homes declined slightly for the fourth straight month, but it was still a record high for December. The National Association of Realtors’ index of pending home sales dipped 0.3 percent to 125.5 in December, an all-time high, according to the Jan. 29 report. An…


Major Dealers’ Websites Report Silver Shortages

Several major dealers of silver, gold, and other precious metals say they’re encountering shortages of silver, in particular, after some Reddit users in the popular forum WallStreetBets called for users to create a run on the precious metal. Later, top users on the Reddit WallStreetBets forum called on others not to purchase silver stocks, or SLV, saying…


US Employment Costs Rise Modestly in Fourth Quarter

SILVER SPRING, Md.—Wages and benefits for U.S. workers rose in the last quarter of the year, putting all of 2020 in somewhat of a normal range as the pandemic continued to rankle the economy. Total U.S. workers compensation rose 0.7 percent in the October-December quarter, an increase over the previous two quarters, the Labor Department…


US Employment Costs Rose Modestly in Fourth Quarter

SILVER SPRING, Md.—Wages and benefits for U.S. workers rose in the last quarter of 2020, putting the entire year in somewhat of a normal range as the pandemic continued to rankle the economy. Total U.S. workers’ compensation rose 0.7 percent in the October-December quarter, an increase over the previous two quarters, the Labor Department said on…


Britain Set to Apply to Join Asia-Pacific Free Trade Pact

The UK will make a formal request to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the government has said. Britain’s International Trade Secretary Liz Truss will speak to ministers in Japan and New Zealand on Monday morning to request to join the free trade pact, with formal negotiations set to start this year, the…


Analyst: In GameStop Battle, ‘The Little Guy Has Been Winning’

Smaller investors have been winning in the battle with Wall Street over GameStop, according to a financial analyst. “The generic backdrop to all this is kind of a little guy against the big [Wall] Street firms. And, in this case, the little guy has been winning,” analyst Jeff Carlson told The Epoch Times’ “American Thought…