Us economy

Yesterday it was Walmart . Today is was Target’s turn to report quarterly results that showed sales soaring but profits crashing as the company was hit by higher costs for goods, shipping, and headcount. Shares were down by 27.6 percent after the company said that fuel and freight costs will be $1 billion higher this year than it expected. Headcount, compensation, and product costs were up as well. The company said it sees no signs of the cost pressures easing in the second half of the year. Target said it would try not to pass on the increased costs to customers, hoping that it can sacrifice some short-term profit to win market share from competitors. The results, and Target’s reaction, undermine the claim by the Biden administration and Capitol Hill Democrats such as Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Bernie Sanders (Ind-VT) that corporate profiteering and price gouging are fueling inflation. The results also highlight the drag the ESG energy crisis is having on the U.S. … [Read more...] about Target Shares Crash After Inflation Crushes Earnings

Home builders slowed construction on single-family homes much more than anticipated in April as inflation pushed up costs and rising mortgage rates made homes less affordable. Home builders broke new ground on new single-family homes at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.1 million in April, a 7.3 percent drop from the downwardly revised March rate, data from the Census Bureau showed Wednesday. The figures for February and March were revised down sharply. February single-family starts were taken down to 1.213 million from 1.221 million. March’s single-family starts went from 1.2 million to 1.87 million. The April figure is 8.3 percent less than the March figure prior to the revision and nearly 10 percent below the February preliminary figure. That illustrates how big the slowdown in construction has been over the last few months. The single-family market is most sensitive to interest rates. In April, rates on the traditional 30-year fixed mortgage climbed sharply, … [Read more...] about Housing Starts Plunge as Bidenflation Rampages Across U.S.

A dilapidated, 765-square-foot earthquake shack in San Francisco sold for $408,000 this week–a deal that is seen as a bargain considering the difficulty of finding a home under half a million dollars in the city’s surging real estate market. The median selling price for homes in San Francisco is $1.2 million. Although details were not available about the buyer of the home, which is located at 16 De Long Street, the owner was overjoyed and brought to tears after receiving the selling price. “I think the most notable part of the sale was that the owner of the home cried tears of joy when we presented her the offers,” Vanguard realtor Brian Tran told the San Francisco Chronicle . Tran reportedly said he is helping the owner buy an investment property that will generate cash flow. “She has worked so hard her whole life. She can finally relax and collect residual income.” The Chronicle notes that the average price per square foot in San Francisco is $957 and 16 De Long went … [Read more...] about Rotting Shack Sells for $400,000 in San Francisco

Smack in the heart of one of America’s most expensive cities, a tiny 180-square-foot shack is listed for sale at $1.98 million. The one-bedroom, one-bathroom Palo Alto-based shanty is situated next to a two-car garage. According to the Daily Mail , this prime piece of real estate is just a 12-minute drive from Stanford University and 25 minutes from Facebook’s Palo Alto headquarters. The address is 829 La Para Avenue. The shack, which was built in 1930, rests on 6,800 square feet of land, which is where the price for the property really stems from, as it provides the opportunity for the lucky purchaser to “build their dream home” on it, as the listing states in its description. However, the size of that home might be limited due to a floor area ratio (FAR) measure that was enacted in 1991 when the City of Palo Alto adopted an anti-mansionization mandate that allows for homes to be built on just 30 percent of land that is over 5,000 square feet. Accordingly, the Daily … [Read more...] about 180-Sq-Foot Palo Alto Shack Selling for $2 Million

NEW YORK: Shorter-dated U.S. Treasury yields jumped on Tuesday and the yield curve flattened after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that the U.S. central bank will "keep pushing" to tighten U.S. monetary policy until it is clear that inflation is declining. "What we need to see is inflation coming down in a clear and convincing way and we're going to keep pushing until we see that," Powell said at a Wall Street Journal event. "If that involves moving past broadly understood levels of 'neutral' we won't hesitate to do that," Powell added, referring to the rate at which economic activity is neither stimulated nor constrained. Read full story The comments confirmed the market’s view that the Fed is focused on easing price pressures even as stock market prices wobble and some investors worry that aggressive tightening will tip the U.S. economy into recession. “We’ve always known that 'neutral' is very difficult to estimate, and so the idea that the Fed was going … [Read more...] about Short-dated yields jump as Fed’s Powell adopts hawkish tone on inflation

BRUSSELS — The world economy is heading into a potentially grim period as rising costs, shortages of food and other commodities and Russia’s continuing invasion of Ukraine threaten to slow economic growth and bring about a painful global slump. Two years after the coronavirus pandemic emerged and left much of the globe in a state of paralysis, policymakers are grappling with ongoing challenges, including clogged supply chains , lockdowns in China and the prospect of an energy crisis as nations wean themselves off Russian oil and gas . Those colliding forces have some economists starting to worry about a global recession as different corners of the world find their economies battered by events. Finding ways to avoid a slowdown while continuing to exert pressure on Russia for its war in Ukraine will be the primary focus of finance ministers from the Group of 7 nations who are convening in Bonn, Germany, this week. At a news conference on Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Janet L. … [Read more...] about Economic Headwinds Mount as Leaders Weigh Costs of Confronting Russia

After inflation hit a 40-year high of 9 per cent today, Conservative MPs, including some ministers, are again pointing the finger of blame at the Bank of England and its governor Andrew Bailey for raising interest rates too slowly. Worryingly, some senior Tories are even raising the question of whether the Bank should lose its operational independence on monetary policy,  threatening the 25-year consensus since Gordon Brown ceded the politicians’ control of interest rates to the Bank. Liam Fox, the former cabinet minister, argues the Bank should stick to its “day job” of hitting the government’s 2 per cent inflation target, rather than worrying about political matters such as climate change (though Rishi Sunak added that to the Bank’s mandate last year). Fox said : “There is a distinct feeling that those who should be protecting us from the debasement of our currency, the erosion of our earnings and the devaluation of our savings, have had their minds too much … [Read more...] about Giving the government control over interest rates would be a disaster

Burberry has reported a jump in annual earnings as sales rebounded, but said its outlook for the year ahead depends on lockdowns and a recovery in spending across China. The luxury fashion firm reported underlying operating profits of £523 million for the year to April 2, up from £396 million the previous year as like-for-like sales jumped 18%. On a reported basis, pre-tax profits lifted 4% to £511 million. But the group said comparable store sales growth slowed to 7% in its fourth quarter as Covid lockdowns in China, its biggest market, hit March trading. The group said: “Our outlook is dependent on the impact of Covid-19 and rate of recovery in consumer spending in mainland China. Recommended Coleen Rooney to resume evidence in Rebekah Vardy court battle - live ‘Putin likely to have lost third of troops in Ukraine’ – follow live “While the current macro-economic environment creates some near-term uncertainty, we are actively managing … [Read more...] about Burberry sees outlook weighed on by China Covid lockdowns

Minister for Industries and IT Gudivada Amarnath has said that efforts are being made to revive the international flights to Malaysia and Bangkok, which were withdrawn due to the COVID-19 pandemic, soon. The Minister participated as the chief guest at the Visakha Connect and Tourism Mega Meet’, organised by the Air Travellers Association (India) here, on Sunday. Speaking to media persons, who met him on the side lines of the meeting, Mr. Amarnath said that the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, to be held at Davos from May 22 to 26, would bring in investments to the State. The Davos conference would discuss 18 issues and the State government would focus on 10 proposals pertaining to issues like agriculture, tourism, education, medical and health and economy. The conference was a great opportunity to showcase Andhra Pradesh, he said. Mr. Amarnath recalled that the seed for the development of IT sector in Visakhapatnam was sown during the tenure of former Chief Minister … [Read more...] about Efforts on to revive flights to Malaysia, Bangkok from Visakhapatnam, says Andhra Minister

The statement issued by Sri Lanka’s newly appointed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was nothing short of an intimation, nay confirmation, of the apocalyptic economic crisis that the island nation confronts. The numbers thrown by Mr Wickremesinghe are self-explanatory of the mess that he will need to clean up to put Sri Lanka back on track. Government revenues cover only 40 per cent of the expenditure being incurred. The fiscal deficit is around 13 per cent of GDP. The foreign exchange reserves are virtually non-existent. According to Wickremesinghe, “It is a challenge for the treasury to find USD 1 million.” Petrol stocks are down to just one day. Sri Lanka is looking at power cuts of around 15 hours a day because a quarter of the electricity is produced from oil which the government has no money to buy. There are huge shortages of medicines. Shortages of virtually every other commodity, including food, are inescapable. With the government being “compelled to print money” to pay … [Read more...] about India Must Lead Quad Effort to Pull Out Sri Lanka from Clutches of China’s Debt Trap Diplomacy