Revealed: Taylor Swift’s concerts boosted the U.S economy by BILLIONS – and the pop juggernaut is spearheading a ‘tour tourism’ trend, with trips booked around gigs. So are YOU ready for a ‘Swiftcation’?

Revealed: Taylor Swift’s concerts boosted the U.S economy by BILLIONS – and the pop juggernaut is spearheading a ‘tour tourism’ trend, with trips booked around gigs. So are YOU ready for a ‘Swiftcation’?

Taylor Swift is redefining what it is to be a success in the music industry – and simultaneously changing the travel industry. Last year, the U.S leg of her Eras tour bolstered the economy Stateside by at least $10billion (£8.6billion), according to the U.S Travel Association. The ‘Taylor Swift Effect’ was name-checked in the Federal Reserve Bank of … Read more

Donald Trump says he would not keep Jerome Powell as Fed chair

Donald Trump says he would not keep Jerome Powell as Fed chair

Donald Trump, the likely 2024 presidential Republican nominee, said that if he were to be reelected, he would not reappoint Jerome Powell as chairman of the Federal Reserve, claiming the central bank’s plans to cut rates this year are only in President Joe Biden’s interest. “No, I wouldn’t,” Trump said when asked about keeping Powell … Read more

U.S. economy grows more than expected at end of 2023, driven by consumer spending

U.S. economy grows more than expected at end of 2023, driven by consumer spending

The U.S. economy grew at an unexpectedly brisk 3.3 per cent annual pace from October through December as Americans showed a continued willingness to spend freely despite high interest rates and price levels that have frustrated many households. Thursday’s report from the U.S. Commerce Department said the gross domestic product — the economy’s total output of goods … Read more

Fed’s Bostic warns US progress on inflation is likely to slow

Fed’s Bostic warns US progress on inflation is likely to slow

Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic said inflation could “see-saw” if policymakers cut interest rates too soon, warning that inflation’s descent towards the central bank’s 2% goal was likely to slow in the months ahead, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. Bostic, who will be a voting member on the Federal Open Market Committee this … Read more

Fed’s aggressive rate-hiking campaign results in record loss of $114B for 2023

Fed’s aggressive rate-hiking campaign results in record loss of 4B for 2023

Rising income expenses pushed the Federal Reserve system deep into a record loss last year, the central bank said in preliminary figures released on Friday. Fed income after expenses came in at a negative $114.3 billion last year, versus $58.8 billion in positive income the year before. The loss was tied to a jump in interest expenses faced by … Read more

The U.S. Is Reaping the Benefits of Low Unemployment

The U.S. Is Reaping the Benefits of Low Unemployment

With the Labor Department having released its December jobs report last Friday, we now have a complete picture of 2023, and it’s a very encouraging one. During the course of the year, the U.S. economy created 2.7 million jobs, taking total non-farm employment to 157.2 million. That means there are about 4.9 million more people … Read more

U.S. Federal Reserve pivot may cap junk bond defaults, but risks remain

U.S. Federal Reserve pivot may cap junk bond defaults, but risks remain

Investor optimism that the Federal Reserve will start cutting interest rates is breathing new life into the market for junk debt, providing timely relief to the lowest-rated companies and likely capping the rate of defaults in 2024. As the U.S. central bank started to raise rates in 2022 and worries about defaults grew, companies rated … Read more

Progressive Dem Ro Khanna urges Jerome Powell to cut rates now or be ‘responsible’ for Trump winning White House

Progressive Dem Ro Khanna urges Jerome Powell to cut rates now or be ‘responsible’ for Trump winning White House

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell risks clearing the way for Donald Trump to win the presidency in 2024 if he doesn’t immediately start cutting interest rates, a top progressive lawmaker claimed Wednesday. Ro Khanna, an outspoken California Democrat who has repeatedly blasted Powell over the Fed’s handling of inflation, once again took aim at the … Read more

U.S. Federal Reserve leaves key interest rate unchanged, expects 3 rate cuts in 2024

U.S. Federal Reserve leaves key interest rate unchanged, expects 3 rate cuts in 2024

For a third straight time, the U.S. Federal Reserve kept its key interest rate unchanged Wednesday, as it signalled its expectations to make a series of quarter-point cuts to the benchmark interest rate next year. Those envisioned rate cuts — which wouldn’t likely begin until the second half of 2024 — suggest officials think high borrowing rates … Read more