Author: News Room

Japan’s workers still aren’t getting paid enough to keep up with rising prices. That’s hurting living standards and creating a major headache for the country’s new central bank chief as he marks his first week on the job. Adjusted for inflation, wages slipped 2.6% in February, compared to the same month a year earlier, according to government data released last week. That marked nearly a year -— 11 straight months — of declines despite a major campaign by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to hike compensation. Economists say the issue will likely continue to dog the Bank of Japan’s new governor,…

Egg prices fell by almost 11% in March, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said Wednesday, following a 7% decline in February and delivering relief from record-high prices over the winter.The decrease is largely due to a recovery in egg production and weaker consumer demand, said Brian Moscogiuri, global trade strategist at Eggs Unlimited, an egg supplier.Egg prices rose more than those of almost any other consumer good or service last year, in percentage terms. In a sign of the times, comedian Trevor Noah asked popstar Taylor Swift at the Grammy Awards in February if her fans could help reduce…

A Los Angeles city councilman is proposing the minimum wage for the city’s tourism and hospitality workers be raised to $25 per hour as the cost of living has outpaced wages and Los Angeles prepares to host several global events in the next few years.  City Councilman Curren Price wants to raise the pay from the current $16 minimum wage, FOX Los Angeles reported. The ordinance would impact 36,000 tourism workers across the city and would increase to $30 by 2030, Price tweeted Wednesday. BIDEN’S IRS SLAMMED OVER PLAN TO DIP INTO TIP JARS: ‘ALREADY STRUGGLING TO SURVIVE’ Price and SEIU…

By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday called for continued significant aid to Ukraine as it battles against Russia’s invasion, and lauded Ukrainian authorities for their focus on good governance and anti-corruption. Yellen, who paid a surprise visit to Kyiv in February, spoke at the start of a ministerial meeting on Ukraine during the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund, where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal also spoke. “Supporting Ukraine is a collective effort. We welcome the efforts by our allies and partners to provide significant, predictable, and timely…

By Ambar Warrick Investing.com– Gold prices rose in Asian trade on Thursday as softer-than-expected U.S. inflation data spurred bets on an early rate-hike pause by the Federal Reserve, while growing fears of a recession also supported safe haven buying. The yellow metal pushed further above the $2,000 mark this week, and was now about $50 away from a 2020 record high. Softer-than-expected U.S. was the trigger for gold’s latest rally, as markets began pricing in the possibility that the Fed will pause its rate hike cycle as soon as June.   The showed that policymakers were considering a pause in rate…

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) speaks during a Senate Finance Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, U.S., October 19, 2021. Mandel Ngan/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo By Lena Masri (Reuters) – U.S. Senator Ron Wyden has called for the Biden administration to carry out an investigation after a Reuters report showed how Russian authorities are using facial recognition to curb dissent with the aid of U.S. technology.  Wyden, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, said that “American technology shouldn’t be a linchpin in Russia’s authoritarian surveillance machine.” “The administration should thoroughly investigate allegations that U.S. chips…

U.S. stocks have been choppy Wednesday, as investors parse a consumer-price index report that showed inflation remains sticky despite some signs of easing. “It was almost dead on the consensus,” said Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab, in a phone interview. “It wasn’t a surprise in either direction.” The U.S. consumer-price… Read the full article here

Sometimes, boring businesses make exciting investments. In the case of Ferguson, a wholesale distributor of plumbing, heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning products, boring could prove exciting enough to put it in the S&P 500. Ferguson (ticker: FERG) is the largest plumbing and HVAC distributor in the U.S. Its customers are mainly contractors and maintenance professionals. But it also sells to do-it-yourselfers, chiefly through its build.com website. Plumbing might not capture hearts and minds, but it is necessary—and that’s a good thing in this economy, with rising interest rates stirring concerns of a potential slowdown. Not only does Ferguson’s valuation look downright…

Mega retailer Walmart borrowed $5 billion in the corporate bond market on Wednesday, with strong investor demand dialing back borrowing costs for the national chain. Walmart WMT, a big-box retailer with AA credit ratings, was initially expected to raise about $4 billion, but increased its borrowing size and trimmed pricing after order books shaped up to around $20.5 billion, according to Informa Global Markets. “If… Read the full article here

Governor calls for more focus on mental health in wake of mass shooting In an exclusive interview with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear says in the wake of a mass shooting in Louisville, that we need to do more to de-stigmatize mental health and everyone needs to show a little more love and less hate in their day-to-day. Read the full article here