George Pearkes 
www.forbes.com
New Unemployment Applications Plunge To Lowest Level Since 1969
The Federal Reserve said the labor market faced an “unusual and uncomfortable” balance.
A curated feed of finance and economics content — markets, investing, macro, monetary policy, trade, and more.
Feed on BlueskyFeeds Stats
- 💙 Liked by 1 user
- 📅 Updated 20 days ago
- ⚙️ Provider attie.ai
Finance & Economics Likes over time
Like count prediction
The feed Finance & Economics has not gained any likes in the last month.
Feed Preview for Finance & Economics
JUST IN: The Federal Reserve holds rates steady—and now calls inflation “elevated,” not just “somewhat elevated” as before, as energy prices surge.
40
522
2085
BREAKING:
Jerome Powell says he'll remain on the Fed board as a governor — at least until the resolution of legal challenges Trump has mounted against the central bank.
Powell's term allows him to remain at the Fed until 2028, but for decades, chairs have left when their successor is installed.
38
194
923
Crazy price volatility in the oil market:
In less than 48 hours, Brent crude has swung from a local low of $111 to a high of $126 and is currently trading at around $116 (Bloomberg chart below).
This level of instability is far from cost-free for the global economy
#economy #oil #markets #volatility
8
25
142
EU GDP early flash estimates are in today—the EU grew 1% over last year, the Eurozone 0.8%
Fastest: Spain (2.7%), Lithuania (2.5%), Portugal (2.3%), Czechia (2.1%), Sweden (1.9%)
Slowest: Ireland (-6.3%, mostly pharma exports), Germany (.3%), Austria (.6%), Italy (.7%), Belgium (.8%)
2
23
55
FEDWATCH: “.. intervention levels—$120 on crude, 4.5% on 10s, and 160 on Yen—will be tested again, potentially sparking a larger directional move in equities and credit because, as the squeeze on Iran stays on, the negative second-round effects will be priced in.”
1
9
33
The average American family paid $1,700 in tariffs last year, according to the bipartisan Congressional Joint Economic Committee. Few will ever see any of that money back. The refunds will go to companies, if doled out at all. What a joke.
87
1741
6453
US real GDP grew at an annualized q/q rate of +2.0% in 1Q2026, up from +0.5% in 4Q2025. This fell below market expectations of +2.2%.
1
15
52
NEW:
US Real GDP came in at a 2% annualized growth rate in Q1 2026 data released this morning. Consumption & investment increased, government output rose, and the trade deficit increased
Nominal GDP growth (unadjusted for inflation) came in at 5.6% annualized
1
11
60
Long-shot bets on military action made on Polymarket have a win-rate almost four times higher than the platform average, according to new research, raising fears that wagers placed by insiders could reveal classified information.
Read the full story on #FTEdit 👉 ft.trib.al/Zqokt5y
4
26
50
The GDP report today does not show “all cylinders kicking”. It shows a rebound from the federal shutdown, inflation rising, and consumption softening.
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com
Scott: "The fact of the matter is that all of the cylinders are kicking. It is good news. You can even feel in our environment how good things are getting. Gas prices continue to come down, which means your groceries will come down a little bit as well. We've got a lot of good signs in the economy."
2
8
27
*TAIWAN 1Q GDP RISES 13.69% Y/Y; EST. +11.30%
4
10
68
“The latest ABS consumer price index figures show just how pointless hiking interest rates would be at dealing with inflation. But raising rates is baked into the Reserve Bank’s DNA,” writes Greg Jericho, Chief Economist at The Australia Institute.
Read more on The Point: theaus.in/4tHLcYz
4
20
68
Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent for the Wall Street Journal:
143
1140
3427
Most important chart in today's Monetary Policy Report.
3
5
15
55% of Americans now feel that their financial situation is worsening — a higher level than during the Great Recession and the pandemic, according to Gallup.
news.gallup.com/poll/7089….
news.gallup.com
Affordability Still Dominates Americans' Financial Worries
Inflation and the cost of energy, housing and healthcare lead the issues Americans cite as their top financial concerns, while a record share say their personal financial situation is getting worse.
5
78
268
You'd need a really compelling reason to raise interest rates when wage and salary growth is running at 4% imo:
2
2
17
GOLDMAN: “.. New orders for durable goods rose 0.8% in March, roughly in line with consensus expectations, and core capital goods orders increased 3.3%, well above expectations and the largest monthly increase since June 2020. ..
“We boosted our Q1 GDP tracking estimate by 0.2pp to +3.5% ..”
5
15
91
‼️ Russia: “Sberbank and the Central Bank are discussing the transfer of frozen assets to a separate legal entity.”
www.kommersant.ru/doc/8632513
3
2
54
The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady for a third straight meeting, as widely expected. It is likely to be Jerome Powell's final meeting as chair.
Statement: www.federalreserve.gov/ne….
Full coverage: www.nytimes.com/live/2026….
#EconSky
www.federalreserve.gov
Federal Reserve issues FOMC statement
Recent indicators suggest that economic activity has been expanding at a solid pace. Job gains have remained low, on average, and the unemployment rate has bee
1
11
32
Powell’s term as the central bank chair expires next month.
www.forbes.com
Federal Reserve Will Likely Hold Rates Steady In Jerome Powell’s Final Meeting
Powell’s term as the central bank chair expires next month.
1
14
36
Kevin Warsh is leaning on the Dallas Fed’s Trimmed Mean Inflation measure (b/c it’s going down) at a time when the Dallas Fed itself is warning that it maybe misleading because it is calibrated to an era of low inflation that we are no longer in
www.dallasfed.org/researc….
www.dallasfed.org
Skewness warrants caution as Trimmed Mean PCE inflation eases
Divergence of core and trimmed mean inflation readings prompt reassessment of which one is the best indicator of medium-term trend.
4
38
134
Oil could trade at nearly $120 if war drags on, Goldman Sachs warns www.ft.com/content/448b...
www.ft.com
Oil could trade at nearly $120 if war drags on, Goldman Sachs warns
Analysts raise base case for Brent to $90 a barrel in fourth quarter and see chance it could rise much higher
14
38
130
⚠️ Food and beverage inflation surged almost 8% over the last year, primarily due to increases in fuel costs.
As increased costs for fertilizer and plastics begin to be reflected as well, we can expect an acceleration of food and beverage inflation.
And the Strait of Hormuz is still closed.
![Meanwhile, urea prices, the world's most widely used nitrogen fertilizer, have doubled since February, to ~$900 per metric ton, the highest since the 2022.
Fertilizer costs are rapidly rising for farmers and will eventually translate into higher wholesale food prices before landing on grocery store shelves.
Food inflation is set to accelerate.
Exhibit 1: Average spot inflation +7.9% y/y. Up +373bps vs. last month
[chart]
Source: BofA Global Research
BofA GLOBAL RESEARCH
12:58 PM • 4/26/26 • 216K Views](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gvda6fem6r7selm4gzjjww4a/bafkreig3fjl6rnsjypykus6pl5l22fw42x7t6mkfum4ttmdyr5qoad7oiu)
2
55
141