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Restaurant workers in Washington rely heavily on tips, which account for 26% of their total wages — slightly higher than the national average, per data out last week from Square, the payments company. (The average tip is 15%). ... See MoreSee Less
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As we consider household debt and rising delinquencies, we note that if funding for the healthcare subsidies are rolled back to pre-Biden levels some 3.4 million more will become uninsured adding to consumer pressure. buff.ly/3Vlbz7F ... See MoreSee Less
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“The economy is not sending any signals that we need to be in a hurry to lower rates” said Fed Chair Powell on Thursday, sending the stock market down on concerns about future rate cuts. The DJIA lost 1.2% for the week, the S&P 500 dropped 2.1%, and the NASDAQ sank 3.1%. The October CPI rose 0.2% MoM, meeting expectations, with a YoY increase of 2.6% (2.4% in September). The core CPI, which excludes food and energy, rose 0.3% MoM, also matching expectations, while remaining at a 3.3% YoY. The shelter index rose 0.4% month-over-month in October and 4.9% year-over-year. The Producer Price Index (PPI) also increased in October, with both the headline and core PPI rising by 0.2% and 0.3% month-over-month, respectively. The federal budget deficit widened significantly in October, with the Treasury Budget reporting a deficit of $257.0 billion. Retail sales for October grew 0.4% month-over-month, beating expectations and demonstrating resilient consumer spending. Excluding autos, retail sales edged up by 0.1%, slightly below the consensus of 0.2%, suggesting that core consumer demand remains steady but moderated. Industrial production in October declined by 0.3%, consistent with expectations, marking ongoing weakness in the manufacturing sector. Capacity utilization fell to 77.1%, missing expectations of 77.3% and underscoring underutilization in industrial capacity, which remains 2.6 percentage points below its long-run average. Labor market indicators showed stability but some softening. Initial jobless claims for the week ending November 9 totaled 217,000, slightly below the consensus of 220,000, reflecting relatively low levels of layoffs.Employers appear that they are remaining confident about the overall outlook of the economy. Continuing jobless claims for the week ending November 2 decreased by 11,000 to 1.873 million. @Chmura Economics & Analytics ... See MoreSee Less
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This Week:Tuesday: The Commerce Department releases new residential construction data for OctoberThursday: The National Association of Realtors reports existing-home sales for October. The Labor Department reports weekly jobless claims. ... See MoreSee Less
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