Category: News Desk

Rate Rise Unlikely on Shrinking Deficit, Employment Gains


The Federal Reserve believes a rise in interest rates is unlikely before April.

Notes for the latest Federal Open Market Committee state that the Federal Reserve sees low interest rates continuing throughout the first quarter of this year, despite expectations from a year ago that a rate hike would come early in 2015. “Most participants thought the reference to patience indicated that the committee was unlikely to begin the normalization process for at least the next couple of meetings,” the Committee stated in its meeting minutes.

The Part-Time Economy Consuming America


Workers on the U.S. west coast are experiencing serious challenges when it comes to landing a full-time job. This is forcing millions of Americans to languish in part-time positions, because there are no other options available. In the state of California alone, over 1.2 million people are underemployed. In total, that number equates to the same population of Oakland and San Francisco.

Some people wonder why you would live in a state that is so anti-business. This is what California has done to itself and they just raised taxes.

U.S. Services Demand Falls Despite Cheaper Oil


Despite hopes that cheaper oil would encourage more spending on other goods and services, non-manufacturing fell to its lowest growth rate since June.

Demand for non-manufacturing services in the United States, fell to 56.2 in December, lower than 59.3 in November. The employment index also fell to 56 from 56.7 in the prior month.

Plummeting Oil Prices, Sanctions to Sink Russia into a Recession


With oil prices showing no signs of surging anytime soon and western sanctions on Russia because of their behavior in the Ukraine, the Russian economy is set to plunge into a recession in 2015, as per a warning issued by the country’s financial authorities. Adding to the pessimistic outlook, the ministry has estimated the GDP will sink by 0.8%, which is in stark contrast to the earlier forecast of a GDP growth of 1.2%.

Weak Inflation Urges for European QE


Equities dove worldwide as inflation and oil continued to fall, prompting more analysts to urge the European Central Bank to begin its own large-scale quantitative easing program.

Obesity is Weighing Down the World’s Economy


The issue of increasing obesity levels throughout the world is gaining weight as an economic issue. Today, approximately one third of the world’s population is obese or overweight.  As a result, the plague of obesity is creating an economic drain that rivals issues such as smoking, and even armed conflicts, according to research conducted by McKinsey consultants.

Energy Falls Further on Higher Oil Output


Amidst a declining currency and lower revenue from an oil glut, energy-exporter Russia continues to boost production.

Piketty Snubs Government Award, Urges Growth Focus


French economist Thomas Piketty rejected an honor from the French government, dismissing the award and urging French policymakers to focus on growth.

Saying that it is not government’s role to decide who is honorable, Piketty rejected the Legion d’Honneur, an award founded by Napoleon Bonaparte at the beginning of the 19th century. The French government announced the winners of the prestigious award, which recognizes achievements in economics, research, culture, and public works.

Third Quarter Cripples Growth for Philippine Economy


Economic expectations were left uncertain as recent reports showed Philippine’s growth for the third quarter to be slower than normal. GDP fell to 5.3%, significantly lower than the 6.4% gain during the second quarter, and lower than the 7% growth seen during the same period last year. Currently, the gross domestic product is at its slowest pace since 2011, and there are numerous factors to blame.

Statistics Suggest a Substantial Recovery for the Irish Economy


Recent data published in regards to the Irish economy has suggested that a significant recovery may be in the cards for the country this year. Several vital factors throughout Ireland have had a positive impact on the growth forecast. Unexpected levels of high performance in underlying tax revenues, steady increases in employment levels, and reliable trends surfacing in the retail sector have all pushed numbers up.