Commentary Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairman Jerome Powell recently stepped back from the cut and thrust of immediate policy matters to offer insight into Fed priorities—a review of what events and guidelines will prompt future decisions. Some of what Powell said provided comfort. Other things were not so reassuring. And still, others raised fundamental questions about…

By Baruch Mann (Silvermann) Personal loans are a great way to access funds for various business purposes, but if the payments are too high, they can become a burden on your cash flow. With rates increasing, you may find that your personal loan repayments have become more expensive. Whether you have just one personal loan…

Commentary Most investors and Wall Street research analysts believe the Federal Reserve will pause its hikes, keeping the benchmark interest rate unchanged, in June and that a rate cut is likely later in the year. Just take one look at the yield curve. It is still inverted with the one-month rate higher than the six-month…

Last month, the Federal Reserve increased interest rates again, the ninth consecutive increase since the Fed began raising rates in March 2022. While the full effects of the latest rate hike remain to be seen, analysts debate whether the Fed will raise rates again at its next meeting in May. This is the big question…

NEW YORK—The Federal Reserve has raised its key interest rate yet again in its drive to cool inflation, a move that will directly affect most Americans. On Wednesday, the central bank boosted its benchmark rate by a quarter-point to 5.1 percent. Rates on credit cards, mortgages and auto loans, which have been surging since the…

On May 1, First Republic Bank became the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history. Its failure is second to Washington Mutual (2008) and just ahead of Silicon Valley Bank recently. The result was another disruption in the banking industry. Trouble was on the rise in February 2023 when First Republic’s shares had a 98 percent…

Former Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Robert Kaplan said that the regional banking crisis may be more serious than commonly believed and called for the central bank to pause its rate hiking cycle to give policymakers more time to address the risks. Kaplan made the remarks in an interview on Bloomberg TV, in which…

Mortgage experts expect the Bank of Canada’s decision to hold its key interest rate to add heat to the country’s real estate markets. The second consecutive hold since rates started climbing in March 2022, which leaves the overnight rate at 4.5 percent, will likely give buyers and sellers more confidence to make a purchase soon,…

After the great ups and downs in Canada’s housing market these past couple of years, the ramp-up of the 2023 buying and selling season promises greater stability, say economists. Home prices have stopped falling in a lot of the major markets, BMO senior economist Robert Kavcic told The Epoch Times. Mortgage rates have stabilized and are…

Economists from Canada’s major banks predict that the Bank of Canada will hold its key interest rate steady at 4.5 percent on Wednesday, as inflation in the country continues to slow. “After announcing a conditional pause on interest rate hikes in January, the central bank is widely expected to make a second consecutive decision to hold,”…