Stock market today: Wall Street rallies after hiring shows welcome signs of cooling

Wall Street capped a choppy week of trading Friday with the best day for the stock market in over two months, as traders welcomed cooler-than-expected U.S. employment data as a sign that inflationary pressures on the economy are easing. The S&P 500 rose 1.3%, its best day since...

Czech central bank cuts a key interest rate again with inflation down and the economy on the mend

PRAGUE (AP) — The Czech Republic’s central bank on Thursday cut its key interest rate for the fourth straight time as inflation dropped and the economy showed signs of recovery. The cut by a half-percentage point brought the interest rate down to 5.25%. The move was expected by...

Confidence of US consumers continues to decline as Americans worry about the future

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. consumer confidence deteriorated for the third straight month as Americans continue to fret about their short-term financial futures with prices and interest rates still elevated. The Conference Board, a business research group, said Tuesday that its...

Europe's economy shows signs of life with 0.3% growth in 1st quarter as inflation, energy woes ease

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Europe's economy perked up slightly at the start of the year, recording 0.3% growth in the January-March quarter compared to the last three months of 2023 as the inflation burden on consumers eased and the stagnating German economy, the continent's biggest, started to...

Japan's currency falls to its weakest since 1990 against the dollar as the yen keeps yelping

NEW YORK (AP) — Some of the world's wildest action in financial markets is roiling around the Japanese yen. The value of Japan's currency has tumbled so much that for a moment on Monday it took 160 yen to equal $1. A few years ago, it took closer to 100 yen to make a U.S. dollar....

Affluent Americans are driving US economy and likely delaying need for Fed rate cuts

WASHINGTON (AP) — Since retiring two years ago, Joan Harris has upped her travel game. Once or twice a year, she visits her two adult children in different states. She's planning multiple other trips, including to a science fiction convention in Scotland and a Disney cruise soon...

JPMorgan's Dimon hopes for soft landing for US economy but says stagflation is a possible scenario

NEW YORK (AP) — JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon says he’s hopeful the Federal Reserve can bring down inflation without causing a recession but wouldn’t rule out more troubling possibilities, such as stagflation. In an interview with The Associated Press at a Chase branch opening...

Stock market today: Asian benchmarks mostly climb despite worries about US economy

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares mostly rose Friday despite worries about the economic outlook and inflation in the U.S. and the rest of the world. The Bank of Japan ended a policy meeting with no major changes, keeping its benchmark interest rate in a range of 0 to 0.1%. In March, it...

US growth slowed sharply last quarter to 1.6% pace, reflecting an economy pressured by high rates

WASHINGTON (AP) — The nation’s economy slowed sharply last quarter to a 1.6% annual pace in the face of high interest rates, but consumers — the main driver of economic growth — kept spending at a solid pace. Thursday’s report from the Commerce Department said the gross...

US growth slowed sharply last quarter to 1.6% rate, reflecting an economy pressured by high rates