ECONOMY

Photo Credit: David A. Lieb

Applications for unemployment benefits fell again last week as America's labor market continues to hum along despite attempts by the Federal Reserve to cool the economy and bring down inflation that's still higher than optimal.

The number of Americans applying for jobless benefits fell last week by 10,000, to 230,000 the week ending August 19, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

The four-week moving average of claims, a less volatile measure, rose by 2,250 to 236,750.

Jobless claim applications are seen as reflective of the number of layoffs in a given week.

In an attempt to bring down four-decade high inflation, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates 11 times in the past year-and-a-half to the current 5.4%, a 22-year high.

Photo Credit: Gianluigi Guercia

The five-nation BRICS group announced expansion of members on Thursday, having invited six countries to join the bloc.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who is hosting the group's summit in Johannesburg, said that Argentina, Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates would begin their membership in January.

"This membership expansion is historic," Chinese leader Xi Jinping said. "It shows the determination of BRICS countries for unity and development."

This expansion was a central topic of discussion during the three-day summit, although Ramaphosa said the idea had been worked on for over a year.

Photo Credit: Brian Inganga

Francis Ndege isn’t sure if his customers in Africa’s largest slum can afford to keep buying rice from him.

Prices for rice grown in Kenya soared a while ago because of higher fertilizer prices and a yearslong drought in the Horn of Africa that has reduced production. Cheap rice imported from India had filled the gap, feeding many of the hundreds of thousands of residents in Nairobi’s Kibera slum who survive on less than $2 a day.

Photo Credit: Kevin Dietsch

Mortgage rates have climbed to their highest levels in 21 years, according to data released by Freddie Mac on Thursday.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 7.09% over the week ending on Thursday, marking a significant increase from 6.96% the week prior, the data showed.

The Federal Reserve has put forward an aggressive string of interest rate hikes as it tries to slash inflation by slowing the economy and choking off demand.

That means borrowers face higher costs for everything from car loans to credit card debt to mortgages.

When the Fed imposed its first rate hike of the current series in March 2022, the average 30-year fixed mortgage stood at just 4.45%, Mortgage News Daily data shows.

Photo Credit: John Locher

President Joe Biden is asking major U.S. automakers and their workers' union to reach an agreement that takes “every possible step to avoid painful plant closings” as the sector transitions to electric vehicles.

The president has not yet been endorsed by the United Auto Workers as he seeks reelection, despite his broad support from organized labor going into the 2024 campaign. The UAW represents 146,000 workers at Ford, General Motors and Stellantis, which are commonly known as the big three automakers. The workers' contracts expire at 11:59 p.m. Sept. 14.