Home
Share |

Content about Economy of the United States

May 6, 2013
The Numbers: Consumer Confidence Rises on Signs of Growing Employment

CHICAGO — Consumers respond positively to better employment numbers, increasing home prices

CHICAGO — CONSUMER CONFIDENCE continues to grow, according to the latest Surveys of Consumers by Thomson Reuters and the University of Michigan. In the March survey, economists report higher confidence amid signs of growing employment, and increasing home prices also had consumers giving a thumbs up to the future.

“Although confidence dipped in early March, since the middle of the month consumers have expressed improved prospects for economic growth,” says Richard Curtin, Surveys of Consumers chief economist. “Two factors were responsible for the gains: Consumers discounted the administration’s warning about economic catastrophe following the cuts in federal spending, and consumers have renewed their expectations that job gains will accelerate in the months ahead.”

Curtin also says that while optimism like this has been seen before, recent gains look to be sustainable, with a lower unemployment rate and increases in consumer spending on the way.

October 30, 2012
Positioning Yourself for Luxury Item Care

SAN FRANCISCO — Take these steps to become the cleaner of choice for the discriminating customer

SAN FRANCISCO — During visits to couture cleaners in large cities, it is always amazing to see the many garments and other textile items that are shipped from outlying regions for cleaning by these expert cleaners.

These shipments do not always contain haute couture, heirlooms or vintage collections. Often, the contents are simply nice quality and easy to process by any competent cleaner with attention to detail and professional skill.

More often than not, these expensive items are transported at the suggestion of the retail stores that sell them, because many retailers tend to distrust the ability of local cleaners to care for luxury fashions.

Many cleaners do not wish to incur the risk of cleaning pricey specialty garments and $1,500-plus bed linens, but you may wish to retain this work in your own market.

If you do want to target the “special” garments in your area, there are several steps you can take to become the cleaner of choice for the discriminating customer.

August 30, 2012
The Numbers: Signs of Slight Economic Expansion, but Consumer Confidence Slips

CHICAGO — Non-manufacturing sector shows growth for 31st consecutive month

CHICAGO — THE LATEST BEIGE BOOK REPORT, compiled by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System with data from the 12 Federal Reserve Districts, shows that the U.S. economy continued to expand slightly in June and early July. Eleven districts noted expanding economic activity.

Early August brought news that the current administration had awarded $9 million in the multi-agency Rural Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge. The program is designed to spur job and economic growth in rural regions. Economic development partnerships and initiatives in a dozen states—Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia—will receive awards. Last year’s winners generated millions in matching funds, and their projects are expected to create thousands of new jobs and hundreds of new businesses, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.

November 16, 2011
IRS Launches Voluntary Worker Reclassification Program

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has launched a program that will enable many employers to resolve past worker classification issues and achieve certainty under the tax law at a low cost by voluntarily reclassifying their workers.

This new program will allow employers the opportunity to get into compliance by making a minimal payment covering past payroll tax obligations rather than waiting for an IRS audit.

The new Voluntary Classification Settlement Program (VCSP) is designed to increase tax compliance and reduce burden for employers by providing greater certainty for employers, workers and the government. Under the program, eligible employers can obtain substantial relief from federal payroll taxes they may have owed for the past, if they prospectively treat workers as employees.

The VCSP is available to many businesses that erroneously treat their workers as non-employees or independent contractors, and now want to correctly treat these workers as employees.

To be eligible, an applicant must:

September 27, 2010
Obama Set to Sign Small-Business Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Small Business Jobs Act cleared the U.S. House last Thursday on a 237-187 vote after passing the Senate earlier in the week. President Barack Obama plans to sign the $30 billion package of incentives and tax cuts into law today.

August 4, 2010
Small-Business Bill Blocked

WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans have blocked a bill to increase small-business lending. The House passed a version June 18.

The legislation was designed to provide $30 billion to small banks to boost lending to small businesses. The bill also included other provisions intended to aid small businesses, such as $11.7 billion in tax breaks for investing in new equipment or the sale of small-business stock.

November 27, 2008
The Bailout’s Breaks: Wall Street Rescue Provides Tax Credits, Deductions (Part 1 of 2)

Talk about last-minute changes to the tax code! The primary purpose of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (EESA) is to solve the credit crunch in the financial markets, but it’s also one of the biggest tax bills in recent years.