Financial News

Wall Street quiet ahead of another inflation report

Trading was muted on Wall Street one day after a report showed that inflation in the U.S. eased and Federal Reserve officials said they expect fewer interest rate hikes this year. Futures for the Dow were mostly unchanged and futures for the S&P 500 inched up 0.1% before the bell Thursday. On Wednesday, the government reported that U.S. inflation declined to 4% in March from the previous month’s 6%, an encouraging sign for those hoping that the Fed dials down the aggressive policy that fueled its decisions to raise interest rates nine times in the past year.

Biden to expand some migrants’ health care access: officials

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is set to announce that his administration is expanding eligibility for Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance exchanges to hundreds of thousands of immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children. That’s according to two people familiar with the matter who discussed it on the condition of anonymity before Thursday’s announcement. The action will allow those covered by the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, to access government-funded health insurance programs. The White House action comes as the DACA program is in legal peril and the number of people eligible under the program is shrinking.

Biden admin’s ‘focus’ turns to celebrating new investments

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is closing out a three-week push to highlight the benefits of infrastructure investments in local communities by awarding nearly $300 million to help repair or replace more than a dozen bridges. Events in several states Thursday will mark the end of the beginning phase of a more expansive White House push to remind voters of Biden’s accomplishments. During the Biden administration’s “Investing in America” tour, officials held more than 50 events across 25 states at projects benefiting from laws passed during the Democratic president’s first two years in office. Events Thursday will be for projects in Virginia, Washington, upstate New York, rural South Carolina and Wisconsin.

Haven’t filed taxes yet? Don’t panic. Here’s what to know

NEW YORK (AP) — The deadline to file your taxes is fast approaching. Whether you do them by yourself, go to a tax clinic or hire a professional, navigating the tax system can be complicated. Experts recommend that you ask as many questions as you need during the process. The deadline is Tuesday. Filing for an extension isn’t ideal, but if you need one you can get it and then you’ll have until October to file your taxes. Experts recommend pulling together all of the documents you need and then giving yourself a chunk of time to sit down and get it done.

Cheaper gas and food provide some relief from US inflation

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. consumer inflation eased in March, with less expensive gas and food providing some relief to households that have struggled under the weight of surging prices. Yet prices are still rising fast enough to keep the Federal Reserve on track to raise interest rates at least once more, beginning in May. Consumer prices rose just 0.1% from February to March, down from 0.4% from January to February and the smallest increase since December. Measured from a year earlier, prices were up just 5% in March, down sharply from February’s 6% year-over-year increase and the smallest such rise in nearly two years.

Delta loses $363 million but says travel demand still strong

Delta Air Lines has reported a $363 million loss for the first quarter because of much higher spending on labor and fuel. That’s overshadowing a sharp rise in revenue. Delta said Thursday the second quarter will be better — it’s predicting a larger-than-expected profit in the April-through-June period, which includes the start of the key summer travel season. Delta is the first big U.S. airline to report first-quarter numbers. Airlines are getting a tailwind from strong demand and limited flights, which together are pushing fares higher. But investors are worried about a slowdown in airline bookings compared with this time last year.

Bank turmoil led Fed officials to forecast fewer rate hikes

WASHINGTON (AP) — Turmoil in the banking system after two major banks collapsed led many Federal Reserve officials to envision fewer rate increases this year out of concern that banks will reduce their lending and weaken the economy. The heightened uncertainty surrounding the banking sector also helped Fed officials coalesce around their decision to raise their benchmark rate by just a quarter-point, rather than a half-point, despite signs that inflation was still too hot, according to minutes of the Fed’s March 22-23 meeting. The Fed also revealed Wednesday that its staff economists have forecast that a pullback in lending resulting from the banking turmoil will cause a “mild recession” starting later this year.

Musk says owning Twitter ‘painful’ but needed to be done

LONDON (AP) — Billionaire Elon Musk has told the BBC that running Twitter has been “quite painful” but that the social media company is now roughly breaking even after he acquired it late last year. In an interview also streamed live late Tuesday on Twitter Spaces, Musk discussed his ownership of the online platform, including layoffs, misinformation and his work style. He told the U.K. broadcaster at Twitter’s San Francisco headquarters that owning Twitter “has not been boring” and has been “quite a rollercoaster.” It was a rare chance for a mainstream news outlet to interview Musk, who also owns Tesla and SpaceX.

New India-born World Bank chief: Real change or rebranding?

BENGALURU, India (AP) — The incoming president of the World Bank was born in India and had his early success in business there. Supporters say that gives Ajay Banga valuable insight into the challenges faced by the developing countries the bank is supposed to help. But not everyone is sure that Banga can be counted on to shake up the bank the way some think it should be. Banga will replace David Malpass, a Donald Trump appointee who declined to publicly say he agreed with scientific consensus on climate change. Climate finance activists are relieved that Banga at least believes climate change is caused by burning fossil fuels. But one activist says Banga’s pedigree working in for-profit corporations amounts to missing a chance to “change the system.”

NPR quits Elon Musk’s Twitter over ‘government-funded’ label

National Public Radio is quitting Twitter over the social media company’s recent actions under owner Elon Musk to stamp it with labels that NPR says undermine its credibility. NPR said its organizational accounts will no longer be active on Twitter because Twitter is falsely implying that it is not editorially independent. Last week, Twitter labeled NPR as “state-affiliated media” on the social media site, a term also used for state-controlled media outlets in authoritarian regimes. Twitter later changed the label to “Government-funded media” and gave it to some other public news organizations, such as the BBC.