As the coronavirus continues to ebb and flow in different regions of the country, causing some states to slow the pace of re-opening for business, the volatility is taking a toll on consumer confidence across the board. According to new data released this week by the Conference Board, consumer confidence dipped in July as COVID-19…
Apparently President Trump is not the only elected official itching to open the economy back up as quickly as possible. The Pennsylvania legislature passed legislation this week that would override Governor Tom Wolf’s current stay-at-home order and require the state to align with federal guidelines on which businesses will be allowed to reopen during the…
As the US economy continues its longest expansion ever recorded, now into its eleventh year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) last week reported that some 266,000 new jobs were added in January. In light of the good news all-around from the BLS January report with unemployment basically unchanged at 3.6%, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome…
The US economic expansion now officially qualifies as the longest in history! The nation’s GDP has grown for the last 121 consecutive months, having started back in 2009 after the end of the Great Recession. Notwithstanding the strength and growth of the economy, the country is replete with those who would hamstring it. A new…
It has long been a subject for debate whether an increase in the minimum wage has a negative impact on local economies, but in response to 43 state and local minimum wage hikes over the past several years compiled by the Employment Policies Institute, business owners from across the country have reported that they have…
Elsewhere in this issue, we referenced a recent report by wallethub.com identifying the Best and Worst Run Cities across the nation. For those who didn’t read that far on Philadelphia, you may want to check out their results. Washington DC took 1st place as the worst of the lot, followed by Detroit, New York and…
Why does Utah rank on top in U.S. economic outlook, while Vermont is on the bottom? When you examine the tax policies of the United States, you can draw certain conclusions about how taxes and regulations impact small business owners. According to a recent study from the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a pro-business partnership…
Jeff Blumenthal of the Philadelphia Business Journal reports that more than half of holiday consumers say they plan to spend the same this season as last year, with the majority of consumers expected to spend an average of $670 on gifts, according to a holiday shopping poll conducted by TD Bank .. .