Fed Holds Rates as Confidence Drops and Layoffs Expand
The Fed kept rates steady, consumer confidence slid to a 12-year low, Trump tapped Kevin Warsh to lead the Fed, UPS and Amazon cut jobs, and unemployment claims remained low.
Fed Declines to Cut Key Interest Rate
Despite continuing political pressure from President Donald Trump, the Federal Reserve this week decided against cutting its key interest rate after its first meeting of 2026.
The decision leaves the rate at some 3.6% after lowering it three times last year. Read Full Article
Confidence in U.S. Economy Falls to Lowest Level Since 2014
It’s been a dozen years since Americans have felt this disillusioned about the U.S. economy.
Consumer confidence declined in January, hitting its lowest level since 2014, according to figures released by The Conference Board, a global nonprofit think tank and business membership organization. Read Full Article
Trump Picks Former Fed Governor Warsh to Replace Powell
President Donald Trump, who has for months expressed deep displeasure with Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, has found Powell’s potential replacement.
Trump said Friday he will nominate former Federal Reserve official Kevin Warsh to be the next chair of the Fed, replacing Powell when his term ends in May. While Trump picked Powell to lead the Fed in 2017, he has consistently assailed him for not cutting interest rates quickly enough. Read Full Article
UPS, Amazon Announce Another Round of Job Cuts
As consumer confidence in the U.S. economy dips, two major companies this week announced they’re cutting jobs.
United Parcel Service officials said the company expects to cut as many as 30,000 positions this year, part of an ongoing effort by the package-delivery giant to rein in costs and boost profitability, according to a report from Bloomberg. Read Full Article
First-Time Unemployment Claims Drop to 209,000
Fewer workers sought initial unemployment benefits last week, keeping that number at historically healthy levels.
According to the Labor Department, applications for assistance for the week ending Jan. 24 fell to 209,000, a drop of 1,000 requests. Analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet were expecting 205,000 new applications, the Associated Press reported. Read Full Article