Economy grew just 1.3% last quarter, consumer spending was weaker than expected
NY Post
The US economy grew at a sluggish 1.3% annual pace from January through March, the weakest quarterly rate since the spring of 2022, the government said Thursday in a downgrade from its previous estimate.
Consumer spending rose but at a slower pace than previously thought, a sign that high interest rates and lingering inflation are pressuring household budgets.
The Commerce Department had previously estimated that the nation’s gross domestic product — the total output of goods and services — expanded at a 1.6% rate last quarter.
The first quarter’s GDP growth marked a sharp slowdown from the vigorous 3.4% rate in the final three months of 2023.
But last quarter’s pullback was due mainly to two factors — a surge in imports and a reduction in business inventories — that tend to fluctuate from quarter to quarter.
Thursday’s report showed that imports subtracted more than 1 percentage point from last quarter’s growth.
Nvidia said the revenue opportunity for its artificial intelligence chips may reach at least $1 trillion through 2027, as the company outlined a strategy to compete more aggressively in the fast-growing market for running AI systems in real time.
Saks Global — owner of luxury stores including Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus — is cutting over 1,200 jobs as it shutters more than a dozen locations nationwide following its bankruptcy filing earlier this year.
Gas prices reach highest level since October 2023 as oil holds above $100 per barrel; US stocks jump
Brent crude oil held above $100 per barrel on Monday, pushing national average gasoline prices to their highest level since October 2023 as President Trump urged allies to help protect oil tankers from Iranian attacks in the key Strait of Hormuz.
Amazon has been signaling that it wants a piece of the Saks empire — including possibly buying it outright — even as its prospects to break into the luxury market have been complicated by its controversial role in the retailer’s bankruptcy, The Post has learned.
The founder of a Vermont-based whiskey brand wants to give away a college campus that he bought during the pandemic — on the condition the new owner shares his vision for “the revival of our country and our civilization.”
WASHINGTON — Energy Secretary Chris Wright predicted that Americans will continue to experience the pinch in their wallets at the gas pump for the “next few weeks,” but he was hopeful that prices could drop below $3 a gallon by the summer.
At the start of his term in January, Mayor Mamdani had the Big Apple’s lenders in his corner — despite his plans to remake the Big Apple economy under his socialist agenda.
Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta is reportedly delaying the release of its next artificial intelligence model at least about two months after internal tests showed the tech falling short of rival models from Google, OpenAI and Anthropic.
BuzzFeed on Thursday flagged going concern doubts and said it will not provide a forecast for 2026 as it evaluates strategic options, sending the digital media company’s shares down 7% after the bell.
Two Live Nation employees bragged about slapping customers with exorbitant fees at the entertainment giant’s venues, saying “these people are so stupid” that “I almost feel bad taking advantage of them,” according to court documents released late Wednesday.
Oil went on an unprecedented roller coaster ride at the start of the week, with the price surging more than 30% to near $120 a barrel late Sunday – only to erase all of those gains just hours later.
President Trump signaled on Wednesday that he plans to tap into the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve in an effort to bring down rising gas prices.
Zero Bond – the exclusive New York City club beloved by the likes of Jay-Z, Gigi Hadid and former Mayor Eric Adams – is opening a Las Vegas outpost this week.