Inflation rate’s return to 2% could take several years: Cleveland Fed economist
Officials at the Federal Reserve are expecting inflation to keep easing...
Officials at the Federal Reserve are expecting inflation to keep easing over the next two years and have penciled in a return to their 2% target in 2026.
But a senior research economist at the central bank’s Cleveland branch, Randal Verbrugge, is warning that it could actually take several years to reach that target — a level designated by the interest-rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee as consistent with maximum employment and price stability. That’s because of what he calls intrinsic characteristics of inflation that make it unlikely to get to 2% in a timely way. The model he came up with shows inflation will still be above target, at 2.7%, by the second quarter of 2025 and close to, but slightly above, 2% as of mid-2027.
ExxonMobil, Air Liquide plan low-carbon H2, ammonia site
ExxonMobil and Air Liquide are teaming up to advance a project at ExxonMobil's...
ExxonMobil and Air Liquide are teaming up to advance a project at ExxonMobil's Baytown, Texas, facility that will use Large Modular Air separation technology from Air Liquide to generate oxygen and nitrogen for low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia production. The resulting low-carbon hydrogen could be carried through Air Liquide's pipeline network to support market expansion, said ExxonMobil.
E&Ps turn to asset-backed securitization for better rates
Proved developed producing reserves asset-backed securitization, introduced...
Proved developed producing reserves asset-backed securitization, introduced by EnCap-backed Raisa Energy in 2019, has become a popular financing method for exploration and production companies due to its higher advance rates compared to traditional reserve-based lending. However, the long-term hedging required to reassure ABS buyers carries significant costs, making the success of these deals dependent on stable production and favorable pricing, according to Haynes and Boone Partner Jeff Nichols.
The numbers: Sales of newly built homes in the U.S....
The numbers: Sales of newly built homes in the U.S. plunged in May, as the number of home buyers scaled back in the face of high mortgage rates.
New-home sales were at the lowest level since November 2023.
Sales of newly built homes fell 11.3% to an annual rate of 619,000 in May, from a revised 698,000 in the prior month, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.
The number is seasonally adjusted, and refers to how many homes would be built over an entire year if builders continue at the same pace every month.
The pace fell short of expectations on Wall Street. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal expected new-home sales to increase to 640,000.
The IRS apologized to billionaire Ken Griffin for a tax records...
The IRS apologized to billionaire Ken Griffin for a tax records leak. Usually, nobody wants to hear from the IRS, especially not a hedge fund founder, but this time, Griffin got an unusual message: a public apology from the agency. The IRS said it was working on the data security problems that allowed a contractor (now in prison) to leak private information about him and other wealthy taxpayers to the media. The “we’re so sorry” is part of the settlement of the Citadel founder’s lawsuit against the IRS over the leak, which he has now dropped. Other targets of the leak included Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Donald Trump.
Volkswagen has agreed to invest up to $5 billion in EV-maker Rivian, sending Rivian’s stock soaring after-hours.
Julian Assange pleaded guilty to one felony charge in a US courtroom on a remote Pacific island as part of a deal with prosecutors that will allow the WikiLeaks founder, who published confidential military documents, to go free. A judge is expected to sign off on the deal today.
Israel’s Supreme Court ruled that the army must start drafting ultra-Orthodox men, something the nation has never done. The decision may tear apart Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition, forcing new elections amid the war in Gaza.
A New York judge partially lifted his gag order on Donald Trump, allowing the former president to talk about witnesses. But he’s still barred from identifying jurors or discussing court staff and their families.
Abe Lincoln may be known for keeping his head in tough situations, but DC’s recent heat wave melted the head off a wax statue of the 16th president.
