The United States government has already collected tens of billions of dollars from President Donald Trump's "reciprocal tariffs." But that money and a lot more could end up being refunded if the Supreme Court agrees with lower courts that many of the levies on imports from other countries are illegal. Anywhere between $750 billion to a whopping $1 trillion, warned Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in a declaration filed with the Supreme Court last week. That eye-popping total could include the more than $72 billion in tariff revenue collected so far by U.S. Border and Customs enforcement...
The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits rose to 224,000 in the week ending Dec. 1, 2024. The figure was higher than the 215,000 estimate and higher than the previous weekly reading of 213,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. Source: @Newsmaker23
Private businesses in the US added 146K workers to their payrolls in November 2024, the least in three months, following a downwardly revised 184K rise in October, and slightly below forecasts of 150K. The service-producing sector added 140K jobs, led by education/health services (50K); trade/transportation/utilities (28K); professional/business services (18K); leisure/hospitality (15K); financial activities (5K) and information (4K). Meanwhile, the goods-producing sector added 6K jobs, of which 30K in construction and 2K in natural resources/mining while manufacturing shed 26K jobs....
The number of workers quitting jobs in the US rose to 3.326 million in October 2024, the highest in five months, from an upwardly revised 3.098 million in the previous month. The quit rate, a metric that measures workers voluntarily leaving their jobs as a proportion of total employment, increased to 2.1% from 1.9% in the previous month. Quits increased in the accommodation and food services sector (+90,000). Source: Trading Economics
The S&P Global US Manufacturing PMI was revised higher to 49.7 in November 2024 from a preliminary reading of 48.8, and compared with 48.5 in October, indicating a near-stabilization of the manufacturing sector. The rate of decline in new orders slowed sharply, while stronger confidence in the future prompted companies to add staff. However, output continued to be cut. Meanwhile, the rate of input cost inflation weakened further and was the slowest in a year. In contrast, output prices rose at a slightly faster pace. "Optimism about the year ahead has risen to an unprecedented level in...
Asia-Pacific markets started trading lower on Friday, with investors assessing November inflation figures from the Japanese capital, Tokyo, and industrial production figures from South Korea. Tokyo's headline inflation rate came in at 2.6% in November, up from 1.8% seen in October. Core inflation, which excludes fresh food costs, rose to 2.2% compared with a Reuters poll's expectation of 2.1%. Tokyo's inflation figures are widely seen as an indicator of national trends. Separately, South Korea's industrial production rose 2.3% year-on-year in October, reversing a 1.3% decline in...
China's official NBS Manufacturing PMI increased to 49.7 in June 2025 from May's 49.5, matching market expectations while marking the third consecutive month of contraction in factory activity.
It...
Both the STOXX 50 and STOXX 600 hovered around the flatline on Friday, as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of further developments in trade talks between US President Trump and Chinese...
Russian forces attacked a thermal power plant in the Kyiv region as part of an overnight attack, Ukraine's Energy Ministry said on Monday, triggering local power outages and gas outages.
The attack...