Economy

Macroeconomic data, trends, and policy developments.

Coverage of key economic indicators, central bank policy decisions, inflation trends, labor data, and growth signals. This category focuses on the macroeconomic forces that shape markets, interest rates, and long-term capital allocation.

Articles

4,092 total articles

Japanese PM Takaichi Visits Hanoi as Bilateral Investment Falls Sharply

Japanese PM Takaichi Visits Hanoi as Bilateral Investment Falls Sharply

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi arrives in Hanoi to meet Vietnamese leader To Lam for high-level talks intended to revive the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership created in 2023. The visit follows a 75% year-on-year decline in new Japanese investment pledges to Vietnam, prompting discussions on business climate reforms alongside cooperation …

Trump Compares U.S. Naval Seizures to 'Pirates' as Blockades Disrupt Oil Trade

Trump Compares U.S. Naval Seizures to 'Pirates' as Blockades Disrupt Oil Trade

President Donald Trump said U.S. naval forces have acted "like pirates" while carrying out seizures of Iranian vessels during the ongoing U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, highlighting the financial gains from captured cargo and oil. The comments come amid dual blockades - U.S. operations targeting Iranian ports and Iran's own restriction on the Str…

States Move to Block Buyout Firms from Owning Law Practices as MSO Concerns Mount

States Move to Block Buyout Firms from Owning Law Practices as MSO Concerns Mount

Lawmakers in California, Illinois and Colorado are advancing bills to prevent private-equity firms and other corporate investors from acquiring law firms or exerting control through Management Services Organizations (MSOs). Proposals include closing perceived loopholes that allow non-lawyers to influence legal operations, prohibiting revenue-sharin…

UPS Pushes Deeper into Prescription Drug Deliveries as Macro Risks Loom

UPS Pushes Deeper into Prescription Drug Deliveries as Macro Risks Loom

UPS is expanding its foothold in high-margin healthcare logistics, a move the company says makes it more resilient to economic swings even as geopolitical tensions around Iran raise fuel costs and growth concerns. The firm has reported record healthcare revenue quarters and shifted its business mix away from low-margin e-commerce parcels toward spe…

White House Orders 5,000-Troop Drawdown in Germany Amid Strains Over Iran Campaign

White House Orders 5,000-Troop Drawdown in Germany Amid Strains Over Iran Campaign

President Trump directed the withdrawal of 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany, including an army combat brigade and the cancellation of plans to station a long-range conventional missile battalion. The move follows public criticism from German Chancellor Friedrich Merz of U.S. leadership on the Iran war and comes as Washington signals a reallocation of…

Treasury Poised to Maintain Coupon Sizes as Large Tariff Refunds Loom

Treasury Poised to Maintain Coupon Sizes as Large Tariff Refunds Loom

The U.S. Treasury is expected to keep coupon auction sizes unchanged for a ninth consecutive quarter when it issues its quarterly financing estimates on May 4 and its refunding announcement on May 6. A potentially large wave of tariff refunds tied to a legal ruling is refocusing attention on whether, and when, the Treasury will move to boost issuan…

Cross-border commerce stalls as Ecuador implements 100% tariff on Colombian goods

Cross-border commerce stalls as Ecuador implements 100% tariff on Colombian goods

Trade along the Colombia-Ecuador frontier has been largely halted after Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa activated a 100% tariff Friday on unspecified imports, an increase from measures first applied in February. Bogotá moved on Thursday to formalize tiered duties of 35%, 50% and 75% on roughly 190 Ecuadorean products. Quito says the move responds…

Mexico to Streamline Approvals and Prioritize Domestic Steel to Bolster Investment

Mexico to Streamline Approvals and Prioritize Domestic Steel to Bolster Investment

President Claudia Sheinbaum said she will unveil steps to boost private investment in Mexico by radically simplifying bureaucratic procedures. The move follows a government report showing the economy recorded its largest contraction in more than a year in the first quarter and that public investment fell 15.6% in real terms year-on-year, reflecting…

Fed’s Bowman Urges Regulators to Weigh Supervision for Emerging AI Tools

Fed’s Bowman Urges Regulators to Weigh Supervision for Emerging AI Tools

Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman said regulators must evaluate how to supervise rapidly advancing artificial intelligence tools such as Anthropic PBC’s Mythos. While the technology can help banks identify vulnerabilities and bolster cyber defenses, officials warned it could also be misused to locate and exploit weaknesses.…

Trump Signs Executive Order Targeting Cuban Security Apparatus and Corruption

Trump Signs Executive Order Targeting Cuban Security Apparatus and Corruption

President Donald Trump on Friday issued an executive order authorizing new sanctions on individuals and entities that support Cuba's security apparatus or are implicated in government corruption and serious human rights abuses. The White House did not name specific targets. The measure expands authority for the State and Treasury departments to lev…

Trump Signals Likely Attendance at June G-7 Meeting in France

Trump Signals Likely Attendance at June G-7 Meeting in France

President Donald Trump indicated on Friday that he will likely take part in the Group of Seven leaders' summit in France in June, replying 'Probably' when asked at the White House. The meeting, scheduled for June 15-17 in Évian-les-Bains, comes amid strained relations with key allies over the Middle East conflict and ongoing trade disputes, includi…

China Urges Durable Iran Ceasefire and Swift Reopening of Strait of Hormuz

China Urges Durable Iran Ceasefire and Swift Reopening of Strait of Hormuz

China's U.N. ambassador Fu Cong said the Iran ceasefire must endure and urged the Strait of Hormuz to be reopened promptly, calling on both Iran and the United States to remove constraints. He dismissed U.S. allegations of China-Iran military cooperation as untrue and signaled the issue could feature in upcoming bilateral talks during a U.S. presid…

EU Trade Chief Condemns U.S. as Unreliable After 25% Auto Tariff Announcement

EU Trade Chief Condemns U.S. as Unreliable After 25% Auto Tariff Announcement

The chair of the European Parliament's trade committee criticized President Donald Trump's decision to raise U.S. tariffs on vehicles imported from the EU to 25% next week, calling the move evidence that the United States is an unreliable trading partner. The EU lawmaker said the bloc will respond firmly and noted the European Parliament is draftin…

Trump Elevates EU Auto Tariffs to 25% Citing Breach of Trade Pact

Trump Elevates EU Auto Tariffs to 25% Citing Breach of Trade Pact

President Donald Trump announced on Friday that tariffs on cars and trucks imported from the European Union will rise to 25% next week, citing the EU's failure to honor an agreed trade deal. He said vehicles produced at U.S. plants will not be subject to the increase and highlighted more than $100 billion in current investment into American auto an…

Lima inflation reaches 4.01% in April, highest since October 2023

Lima inflation reaches 4.01% in April, highest since October 2023

Inflation in Lima accelerated to 4.01% year-over-year in April, marking a sixth straight monthly increase and the highest annual reading since October 2023. Monthly prices rose 0.52% in April, down from March's 2.38% jump. The March surge, the largest monthly increase in 32 years, was driven by a domestic gas crisis, higher global oil prices, and a…

Dallas Fed’s Logan Opposes Signaling a Bias Toward Rate Cuts

Dallas Fed’s Logan Opposes Signaling a Bias Toward Rate Cuts

Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Lorie Logan said she dissented from language in this week’s Federal Open Market Committee statement because ongoing inflation risks and an uncertain economic outlook make it inappropriate to signal a preference for a rate cut. Logan backed the decision to keep the fed funds target at 3.5% to 3.75% and warned…

Dallas Fed’s Lorie Logan Warns Against Signaling a Bias Toward Rate Cuts

Dallas Fed’s Lorie Logan Warns Against Signaling a Bias Toward Rate Cuts

Lorie Logan, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, said on Friday that ongoing uncertainty and persistent inflation concerns mean the Federal Open Market Committee should avoid signaling that its next policy move will be a rate cut. She dissented against wording in the FOMC statement suggesting a bias toward cuts, while supporting the de…

Canada’s Factory Activity Accelerates to Highest Pace Since Mid-2022

Canada’s Factory Activity Accelerates to Highest Pace Since Mid-2022

Canada’s manufacturing sector recorded its strongest expansion in nearly four years in April, driven largely by inventory accumulation and a rise in new orders as energy market disruptions tied to the Middle East pushed firms to secure supplies and hedge prices. The S&P Global Canada Manufacturing PMI climbed to 53.3 from 50.0 in March, with output…