American workers are demanding almost $80,000 a year to take a new job
The amount of money most workers want now to accept a job reached a record high this year, a sign that inflation is alive and well at least in the labor market.
According to the latest New York Federal Reserve employment survey released Monday, the average “reservation wage,” or the minimum acceptable salaryoffertoswitchjobs,roseto$78,645duringthe second quarterof2023.
That’s an increase of about 8% from just a year ago and is the highest level ever in a data series that goes back to the beginning of 2014. Over the past three years, which entails the Covid-19 pandemic era,thelevelhasrisen morethan22%.
Thenumberissignificantinthatwagesincreasingly have been recognized as a driving force in inflation. Other factors continue to keep it well above the Fed’stargeted rateof2%.
Job seekers, or those who have looked for work in the previous four weeks, declined to 19.4% from 24.7% a year ago. That came as job openings fell 738,000to9.58million,accordingtotheU.S.Bureau ofLaborStatistics.
Souce:
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/21/american-workers-are-demanding-almost80000-a-year-to-take-a-new-job.html
US home prices rose in July after 5 months of declines
UShomebuyershaveanewchallengeinaddition to mortgage rates above 7%: Prices are rising again, reversing five months of year-over-year declines, according to a National Association of Realtorsreportreleased Tuesday.
Themedianexistinghomepricewas$406,700last month, up 1.9% from ayear ago when the median homepricewas$399,000.Itwasthehighestprice for the month of July on record. Prices rose in the Northeast, Midwest and South but were unchanged intheWest, theNARreport found.
Prices were pushed up by the stubbornly low inventory of homes on the market — just 1.11 millionexistinghomeswereavailabletobuyatthe endofJuly,down14.6%fromayearago.Itwasthe lowestnumberofhomes forsaleonrecordforthe monthofJuly,whichistypicallyoneofthebusiest months forhomebuyingandsellingintheyear.
Sales of existing homes — which include singlefamily homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops — dropped below expectations and were down 2.2% from June to July. Annually, sales were down16.6%fromayear ago.
Souce:
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/08/22/homes/existing-home-sales-july/index.html
US SEC overhauls rules for $20 trillion private fund industry
TheU.S.securitiesregulatoronWednesdayadopted newrulesthatwillshinealightonprivateequityand hedge fund expenses and fees, in what executives and lawyers said marks a sweeping overhaul for an industrylongcriticizedforitsopacity.
But in a partial victory for fund groups which opposed the rules, the Securities and Exchange Commission did not proceed with proposals that would have expanded funds' legal liability and outright banned arrangements that allow some investorsspecialterms.
The securities regulator's five-member panel voted 3-2 to implement a number of new requirements aimed at increasing transparency, fairness and accountability in the private funds industry, which has more than doubled its assets over the past decade.Theindustrymanagesaround$20trillionin assets.
The new rules require private funds to issue quarterly fee and performance reports, and to disclose certain fee structures while barring giving some investors preferential treatment over redemptions and portfolio exposure. The rules also requirefunds toperformannualaudits.
Souce:
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-sec-votes-overhaul-20-trillion-private-fundindustry-2023-08-23/
Maui government files lawsuit, accuses Hawaiian electric company of causing Lahaina
wildfires Maui County filed a lawsuit Thursday against Hawaiian Electric Company and its subsidiaries, alleging that the utility company’s negligence caused the devastating wildfires that burned thousands of acres of land in the state and killed morethan100 peopleearlierthis month.
The lawsuit alleges that the electric company, known as HECO, “inexcusably kept their power lines energized” in early August, despite the fact that the National Weather Service issued a High Wind Watch and a Fire Warning. The warnings cautioned that strong winds could knock down power lines and ignite a fire that would spread quickly due to dry conditions, the lawsuit indicated.
MauiCounty is seeking damages from HECO that may total tens or hundreds of millions of dollars, accordingto JohnFiske, anattorney representing thecountyinthelawsuit.
Hawaiian Electric Company is a for-profit company that serves 95% of Hawaii’s customer baseandtradesontheNewYorkStockExchange.
https://www.boisestatepublicradio.org/2023-08-24/maui-county-sues-hawaiianelectric-company-for-damages-from-disastrous-fires
Americans are shopping less. But the US economic engine is still humming
TohearexecutivesatsomeofAmerica’sbiggestretailerstellit,consumersarestrainedforcashandbuying less stuff,inatroubling signofaslowingeconomy.
That’s only half true. The consumer appetite that kept the US economy afloat through the worst of the pandemic andbeyondremains hearty —it’sjustcravingsomething new.
Instead of shelling out on yet another pair of running shoes or a new laptop or dishwasher. Americans are optinginsteadtobuytickets forTaylorSwiftorBeyoncéor“Barbie.”They’rebuyingairfare,reservinghotels and hailing Ubers to concerts, weddings, spas, beach vacations — activities that have been curtailed, to varyingdegrees,byCovidoverthepastthreeyears.
That’s important, because Americans’ spending on goods and services accounts for two-thirds of US gross domesticproduct.
We won’t have a read on third-quarter economic growth until late October, but already, forecasts for GDP “are running wild on the upside,” writes Chris Rupkey, chief economist at FwdBonds. “It is looking like a blowoutquarterforeconomicgrowth.”
Souce:
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/08/23/business/nightcap-consumer-spending-us-econ/index.html
