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A weak 0.3% annualized gain in U.S. productivity in the second quarter pointed to possible underlying inflationary pressure, even as the quarterly figure rose 1.3%. These are among the key figures the Federal Reserve will examine as it decides when […]

Enrollment in accounting programs and hiring of new graduates by accounting firms are at all-time highs. Master’s degrees are taking off, too, and firms will need to get creative in their pursuit of in-demand talent.

The U.S. economy added 215,000 jobs in July, keeping the unemployment rate unchanged at 5.3% from June, according to the Department of Labor. Economists surveyed by Reuters had forecast that 223,000 jobs would be added.

The U.S. trade deficit rose 7.1% to $43.8 billion in June, the biggest total in three months, as the strengthening U.S. dollar made imports cheaper for domestic buyers and exports more expensive for trading partners. Faltering global economic growth was […]

U.S. factory orders bounced back with a 1.8% gain in June after May’s decline. The gain came despite lagging exports due to the strong dollar, but analysts said substantial improvement remains elusive. Nonetheless, June’s report adds to data pointing to […]

Americans’ median debt load is $67,900, and mortgages are a major contributor to that figure, according to a Pew Charitable Trusts report. Millennials, however, are more likely to have student loan debt and car loans than they are to have […]

Wages and benefits paid by U.S. employers this spring rose at the slowest pace since the second quarter of 1982, the Labor Department said. The employment cost index, which tracks salaries, wages and benefits, gained 0.2% in Q2, compared with […]

The federal highway funding extension bill passed by Congress contains several tax provisions, including changing the due dates for partnership and corporate tax returns, a provision the AICPA has long advocated. Other changes affect mortgage interest statements, basis of inherited […]

Economic uncertainty underscores a need to raise the U.S. debt limit, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew says in a letter to Congress. The government can probably meet financial obligations until Oct. 30 by continuing “extraordinary measures” implemented in March, Lew says.