by Aria Velasquez | Apr 17, 2021 | Featured, Trade
Aria Velasquez · How small craft retailers are navigating the choppy waters of recovery – Dismal Science ARIA VELASQUEZ: Kelly Straub had high hopes for her business, Shirsty Cat Designs, at the beginning of last year. The independent yarn dyer from Montgomery...
by Aria Velasquez | Apr 15, 2021 | Featured, Trade
The U.S. trade deficit hit a record high in February, the result of increased consumer spending during the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and the corresponding economic crisis. Imports and exports both fell in February, resulting in a trade gap of $71.1 billion,...
by Francisco Velasquez | Apr 15, 2021 | Featured, Personal Income, Retail
The Commerce Department will release the advance retail sales report for March on April 15 at 8:30 am ET. Economists expect strong gains to persist, a signal the recovery is gaining steam as vaccine rollout accelerates and restrictions ease. Here are five things to...
by Alexandra White | Apr 12, 2021 | Featured, Housing
Home prices continued to increase in January, indicating the pandemic housing boom continued into the new year because of the shrinking inventory of homes for sale and low mortgage rates. Nationally, home prices in January rose 11.2% from a year earlier, the highest...
by Francisco Velasquez | Apr 12, 2021 | Employment, Featured, Retail
When the pandemic hit and Cindy Lopez had to shut down the 48-year-old bakery and restaurant she runs with her husband in Milwaukee, she worried she would have to close their business for good. She fell behind on rent. She cut employees’ pay. She faced anxiety...
by Keira Wingate | Apr 9, 2021 | Featured, Manufacturing
Jennifer Peters was looking for another quarantine project and a bit of an escape at the start of the year. When the offer to buy a NASCAR-sticker-covered 2001 Damon Daybreak RV fell into her lap in February, she and her husband jumped on the opportunity. “My kids are...