F-22Raptor
ELITE MEMBER
- Joined
- Jun 19, 2014
- Messages
- 16,980
- Reaction score
- 3
- Country
- Location
The American economy is firing on all cylinders heading into 2018, as employment, stock and consumer confidence numbers look the best they have in years – in some cases in U.S. history.
The unemployment rate sat at 4.1 percent in November, which ties the lowest it's been in nearly 17 years. Job gains, meanwhile, have been consistent, and employers are actively recruiting to fill millions of vacancies across the country.
The stock market set record after record in 2017, as the Dow Jones industrial average cracked 20,000 for the first time in January – then 21,000 in March, 22,000 in August and eventually 24,000 on the last day of November.
The Federal Reserve managed to raise its benchmark rate three times, and, barring any unexpected setbacks, is on pace for another three adjustments in the year ahead. That the Fed isn't expected to stray much from the path it's currently on is notable, as President Donald Trump earlier this year named Fed Governor Jerome Powell to succeed current Chair Janet Yellen. But even with new leadership, Powell isn't expected to rock the boat in terms of rate hikes.
The year's success is likely due to a confluence of factors – continued labor market progress, high expectations for Trump's pro-business agenda, international strength that for years had proven elusive. But America appears to be heading into the new year on as solid an economic foothold as one could expect this late into what is now the country's third-longest period of recovery.
https://www.usnews.com/news/the-report/articles/2017-12-29/the-us-economy-is-looking-good-for-2018
The unemployment rate sat at 4.1 percent in November, which ties the lowest it's been in nearly 17 years. Job gains, meanwhile, have been consistent, and employers are actively recruiting to fill millions of vacancies across the country.
The stock market set record after record in 2017, as the Dow Jones industrial average cracked 20,000 for the first time in January – then 21,000 in March, 22,000 in August and eventually 24,000 on the last day of November.
The Federal Reserve managed to raise its benchmark rate three times, and, barring any unexpected setbacks, is on pace for another three adjustments in the year ahead. That the Fed isn't expected to stray much from the path it's currently on is notable, as President Donald Trump earlier this year named Fed Governor Jerome Powell to succeed current Chair Janet Yellen. But even with new leadership, Powell isn't expected to rock the boat in terms of rate hikes.
The year's success is likely due to a confluence of factors – continued labor market progress, high expectations for Trump's pro-business agenda, international strength that for years had proven elusive. But America appears to be heading into the new year on as solid an economic foothold as one could expect this late into what is now the country's third-longest period of recovery.
https://www.usnews.com/news/the-report/articles/2017-12-29/the-us-economy-is-looking-good-for-2018
