The nation added an estimated 227,000 jobs in November. That tally exceeded the consensus forecast of 214,000 and was a big recovery from the hurricanes and workers’ strikes that impacted October’s gain of just 36,000 positions. The prior two months’ jobs total also was revised higher by 56,000. Overall, the November employment and unemployment data painted a mixed picture. While the jobs gain was encouraging, it was accompanied by an uptick in the unemployment rate...

The Federal Reserve looks ready to lower the federal funds rate by a quarter point, to a range of 4.25% to 4.50%, at next week’s monetary policy meeting. That would represent a full percentage point reduction since mid-September. Although inflation has proven somewhat sticky the last few months, the central bank has slowed the pace of price growth enough this year to justify another decrease. The October Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index was in...

The Federal Reserve appears to have accomplished what it set out to do entering 2024. Indeed, the central bank, which has a dual mandate to promote price stability and foster full employment, has seen the pace of price growth slow during the course of this year, without disrupting the labor market too much. On a 12-month basis, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has fallen from 3.4% in December of 2023 to 2.6% this October. During...