El Salvador is in discussions to open a “bitcoin embassy” in Texas, El Salvador’s Ambassador to the U.S. Milena Mayorga said on Tuesday. The Central American country wishes to open a bitcoin embassy in “new ally” Texas, Mayorga said on Twitter. The embassy will aid “expansion of commercial and economic exchange projects,” Mayorga said following a meeting with the state’s Secretary of State Joe Esparza. … Continue reading El Salvador Plans to Open ‘Bitcoin Embassy’ in Texas

Inflation turned higher to start 2023, as rising shelter, gas and fuel prices took their toll on consumers, the Labor Department reported Tuesday. The consumer price index, which measures a broad basket of common goods and services, rose 0.5% in January, which translated to an annual gain of 6.4%. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for respective increases of 0.4% and 6.2%. Excluding … Continue reading Inflation rose 0.5% in January, more than expected

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday didn’t adopt a more hawkish tone in the wake of a surprisingly strong January jobs report. The S&P 500 rose solidly after Powell’s talk, after some volatile swings higher and lower. Wall Street was on alert for more hawkish commentary after Friday’s jobs report showed a net gain of 517,000 jobs as the unemployment rate fell to a … Continue reading Fed Chair Jerome Powell Sticks To Disinflationary Script; S&P 500 Rises

Wholesale egg prices have cratered in recent weeks from record highs, meaning consumers may soon see relief at the grocery store. But the dynamics of egg pricing from the wholesale to retail market, in addition to other factors, means that’s not a sure thing in the short term. Prices fell to $2.61 per dozen eggs on Monday — a 52% decrease from the peak of … Continue reading Wholesale egg prices have ‘collapsed.’ Why consumers may soon see relief

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Monday said she saw a path for avoiding a U.S. recession, with inflation coming down significantly and the economy remaining strong, given the strength of the U.S. labor market. “You don’t have a recession when you have 500,000 jobs and the lowest unemployment rate in more than 50 years,” Yellen told ABC’s Good Morning America program. “What I see … Continue reading Janet Yellen: ‘You don’t have a recession’ when U.S. unemployment at 53-year low’

The markets were somewhat cautious on Monday, as U.S. stocks fell downward by the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite, this as investors are increasingly growing cautious of rising bond yields. Meanwhile, Bitcoin continues to struggle near the $23,000 trading line. The following is from CNBC: U.S. stocks fell Monday, led downward by the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite, as investors grew increasingly cautious of rising bond yields. The Dow Jones … Continue reading Stocks close lower Monday as higher rates rattle investors

The employment picture started off 2023 on a stunningly strong note, with nonfarm payrolls posting their biggest gain since July 2022. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 517,000 for January, above the Dow Jones estimate of 187,000 and December’s gain of 260,000, according to a Labor Department report Friday. The unemployment rate fell to 3.4% versus the estimate for 3.6%. That is the lowest jobless level since … Continue reading Jobs report shows increase of 517,000 in January, as unemployment rate hit 53-year low

The United States Federal Reserve signaled that soaring inflation may be slowing down a bit on Wednesday, announcing its smaller rate hike in almost a year. The Fed announced a quarter-point increase in its interest rate to a rage of 4.5% to 4.75%, which is the smallest increase since March of last year. “Inflation has eased somewhat but remains elevated,” the Fed said in a … Continue reading Fed announces smallest interest hike in a year 

Exxon Mobil Corp posted a $56 billion profit for 2022, the company said on Tuesday, taking home about $6.3 million per hour last year, and setting not only a company record but a historic high for the Western oil industry. Oil majors are expected to break their own annual records on high prices and soaring demand, pushing their combined take to near $200 billion. The … Continue reading Exxon smashes Western oil majors’ earnings record with $56 billion profit for 2022

Grocery shoppers, frustrated by the record prices of a dozen eggs, are increasingly choosing to go right to the source by bringing chickens home.  The price for a carton of eggs is up 60% year-over-year, according to the latest Consumer Price Index. Eggs are just one example out of hundreds of items that eat further into Americans’ budgets than they did a few years ago. … Continue reading Raising Chickens for Cheaper Eggs Gets Expensive Fast

With the federal government poised to force Western states to change how they manage the alarming shortfall in Colorado River water, there is one constituency with a growing interest in the river’s fate that’s little known to some: Wall Street investors. Private investment firms are showing a growing interest in an increasingly scarce natural resource in the American West: water in the Colorado River, a … Continue reading Wall St snapping up Colorado River water rights

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Axios she is “nervous” about the U.S. defaulting on its debt and cautioned that Americans likely will face a scary and spiraling recession if Congress doesn’t raise the debt ceiling this summer. “Of course, it makes me nervous,” Yellen told Axios from Johannesburg, South Africa, at the end of a 10-day trip across the continent. “It would be devastating. It’s … Continue reading Yellen warns of debt ceiling “catastrophe” for U.S. and beyond

The profits for two iconic Wall Street firms — Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley — plunged sharply last quarter as volatile markets cut deeply into investment banking. Goldman’s profits tumbled 66% to $1.33 billion in the fourth quarter, it said Tuesday, well below what Wall Street had expected. Profits at Morgan Stanley slumped 40% to $2.2 billion, barely beating analyst projections. Expectations for Goldman and … Continue reading Goldman, M. Stanley profits plunge as dealmaking dries up

Inflation closed out 2022 in a modest retreat, with consumer prices in December posting their biggest monthly decline since early in the pandemic, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The consumer price index, which measures the cost of a broad basket of goods and services, fell 0.1% for the month, in line with the Dow Jones estimate. That equated to the largest month-over-month decrease since April … Continue reading Consumer prices fell 0.1% in December, in line with expectations from economists

There’s a hidden risk to the global financial system embedded in the $65 trillion of dollar debt being held by non-US institutions via currency derivatives, according to the Bank for International Settlements. In a paper with the title “huge, missing and growing,” the BIS said a lack of information is making it harder for policy makers to anticipate the next financial crisis. In particular, they … Continue reading ‘Huge, Missing and Growing:’ $65 Trillion in Dollar Debt Sparks Concern

The European Central Bank gave a strong critique of bitcoinon Wednesday, saying the cryptocurrency is on a “road to irrelevance.” In a blogpost titled “Bitcoin’s last stand,” ECB Director General Ulrich Bindseil and analyst Jürgen Schaff said that, for bitcoin’s proponents, the apparent stabilization in its price this week “signals a breather on the way to new heights.” “More likely, however, it is an artificially … Continue reading European Central Bank says bitcoin is on the ‘road to irrelevance’

Distressed crypto firm BlockFi has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey following the implosion of putative acquirer FTX. In the filing, the company indicated that it had more than 100,000 creditors, with liabilities and assets ranging from $1 billion to $10 billion. In the filing, the company listed an outstanding $275 million loan … Continue reading Crypto firm BlockFi files for bankruptcy as FTX fallout spreads