Homebuilding Down, Jobless Claims Up; Fed News Later
U.S. Housing Starts for May posted its lowest tally since May 2020 — the heart of the Covid pandemic: 1.256 million seasonally adjusted, annualized units fell nearly -10% month over month from the upwardly revised 1.392 million for April, and far lower than the 1.35 million analysts had anticipated. Building Permits were also below expectations, reaching 1.393 million seasonally adjusted, annualized units in May from 1.42 million estimated (which was the upward revision to the prior month). This again is the lowest print in five years, and demonstrates a cooling housing market continuing to find its way through the current high-mortgage-rate economy.Single-family homes were flat month over month, -7% year over year. Multi-family took a -30% hit month over month, off a record number of new builds over the past few years. Permits for multi-family were +13% year over year. The housing market sees strong demand for rentals continuing, which should keep multi-family projects in the lead over single-family. We expect this to continue until mortgage rates start to come down meaningfully.
The 'big news' today will be the announcement from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) and the press conference with Fed Chair Jerome Powell following. There won't be any rate cut today, but we do expect a new 'dot plot' from the Fed, which will tip their hand regarding how many rate cuts the FOMC currently expects to deliver this year, and when they might start.This will be the fourth of eight total FOMC meetings this year: the next will be July, but as per tradition, the Fed will skip August. Odds for a September cut are notably higher, although this might be a matter of economists pushing out their hockey sticks a bit. (You'll recall earlier this year that this June meeting was the latest analysts had expected a first rate cut to occur. But a resilient economy combined with a murky tariff outlook have kept those rate cuts at bay.)Questions or comments about this article and/or author? Click here>>
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CNET
9 minutes ago
- CNET
These Fast Food Restaurants Hiked Their Prices the Most Last Year
The days of "fast food" being "cheap food" are long gone, and prices seem to always be increasing. We can blame that phenomenon on rising inflation, and while a trip to a McDonald's drive-thru is still cheaper than settling in for a meal at your favorite steakhouse, it's far from inexpensive. In fact, prices soared in 2024 as some of the most well-known fast food chains hiked prices to make our favorite treats more costly than ever. Not all fast food is created equal, and one restaurant has increased its prices more than others. In fact, it doubled its menu item prices in the last decade. According to a survey conducted by Lending Tree, which surveyed 2,000 Americans, 78% of participants say they now view fast food as a luxury rather than a way to get a quick and cheap bite to eat while on the go. The question is, will those fast food prices continue to rise into 2025? Here's everything to know about fast food inflation, including which chains hiked their prices up the most last year and what may be on the horizon. Fast food price increases undefined Fast Food Chain Item McDonald's Quarter Pounder with Cheese Meal Four-piece McNugget Happy Meal Popeye's 4-piece Chicken Dinner Popeye's Popcorn Shrimp Combo Taco Bell's Beefy 5-Layer Burrito Taco Bell's Gordita Crunch Price increase between 2014 and 2024 122% increase 67% increase 97% increase 94% increase 132% increase 100% increase Source: FinanceBuzz What fast food chains have increased their prices the most in the past decade? In the last decade, McDonald's has increased its prices by a whopping 100% in the US, making it the most increased fast food chain in the country, according to information gathered by FinanceBuzz. But their menu prices aren't only increasing in the states. According to Spine Genie, McDonald's has increased their prices in Canada by nearly 140%. In the US, a quarter pounder with cheese meal cost $5.39 in 2014 and in 2024, it cost $12, FinanceBuzz reports. The second and third restaurants with the most inflated prices were Popeyes and Taco Bell in the US and Panera and Wendy's in Canada. At Popeyes in 2014, you could snag the four-piece chicken dinner for $7. By 2024, that price rose 97% and now costs $13.79. Taco Bell is one chain restaurant that inflated their prices the most in the past decade. Taco Bell These results slightly differ from 2022 when Wendy's and Chick-fil-a had the highest inflation rate and Burger King's chicken fries were the number one inflated menu item across all chains. According to LendingTree's new survey, 46% of participants said they now believe that prices at their local fast food restaurants are now in line with sit-down restaurants. Even more surprising is that 22% of those participants believe fast food was actually now higher priced in comparison. What causes fast food inflation? 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USDA And 63.8% of the US's agricultural imports came from Canada, including 19% of animal products and 12% of fruit and vegetables. USDA According to EconoFact, the Trump administration's 2018 tariffs, which were then kept in place by the Biden administration, did not lower prices for Americans. Will prices continue to rise at fast food restaurants? "The short answer is, it's too soon to tell," Kilders said. However, she does say that it's not just fast food chains increasing their prices. It's happening everywhere. "If we look just generally at the increase [in the Consumer Price Index] for food away from home, that increase was about 3.4% over the last year, and there's not much of a difference between both full-service restaurants and limited-service restaurants," Kilder explained. Paul Weaver/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images While it may seem that McDonald's is hiking its prices more than the Olive Garden or Chili's, that's not necessarily the case. 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Wall Street Journal
12 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
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