Inflation is at a 40-year high. Stock prices are sinking. The Federal Reserve is making borrowing much costlier. And the economy actually shrank in the first three months of this year.
President Joe Biden on Wednesday highlighted new figures showing the government’s red ink will grow less than expected this year and the national debt will shrink this quarter as he tried to counter criticism of his economic leadership amid growing dismay over inflation going into midterm elections that will decide control of Congress.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged more than 900 points and the S&P 500 had its biggest gain in two years Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell downplayed the likelihood of an even larger interest rate hike after announcing the sharpest rate increase since 2000.
The Federal Reserve intensified its fight against the worst inflation in 40 years by raising its benchmark interest rate by a half-percentage point Wednesday — its most aggressive move since 2000 — and signaling further large rate hikes to come.
ANOTHER batch of stimulus checks worth up to $1,200 is set to go out to thousands of Americans this month. Under California’s Golden State I (GSS 1) and Golden State Stimulus II (GSS II) programs launched in 2021, eligible residents are getting up to $1,100 and $1,200 respectively.