Recent articles
October 16, 2026
That Y2K feeling: Why today's economy resembles 2000
It was an economy bursting at the seams: robust growth powered by a tech boom, low unemployment, elevated inflation and Fed rate hikes to try to cool things down.The big picture: That was the situa...
www.axios.com
October 15, 2026
The too-hot-for-comfort economy
Data: Bureau of Labor Statistics; Chart: Courtenay Brown/AxiosData this week has all told the same story: This is a rip-roaring U.S. economy with all the inflationary pressures that might imply.The...
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October 14, 2026
Social Security recipients will see rise in monthly payments next year
Data: Social Security Administration; Chart: Neil Irwin/AxiosSocial Security recipients will see the largest rise in their monthly payments in four years in January, with a 3.6% cost-of-living adju...
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October 9, 2026
The surprising post-pandemic drop in income inequality
Data: Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances; Chart: Neil Irwin/AxiosMiddle- and lower-earners' inflation-adjusted incomes rose during the Biden years — but high earners saw their incomes fall...
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October 8, 2026
The Fed's going to take its time with rate hikes
A couple more interest rate hikes are probably on the way. But the Federal Reserve is in no great hurry to deliver them. That's the takeaway from the latest round of communications out of the centr...
www.axios.com
October 7, 2026
Why France is a warning sign for the markets
The good news about the epic shifts in global bond markets is that they mostly reflect economic fundamentals, not the kinds of panicky swings seen in a crisis.The bad news is that there's a risk th...
www.axios.com
October 5, 2026
Eurodrama in currency markets raises U.S. dollar's standing
Data: FactSet; Chart: Courtenay Brown/AxiosThe euro fell to a 17-month low against the dollar on Monday as political and fiscal worries rattled European markets.Why it matters: Rising borrowing cos...
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September 27, 2026
It's a 5% world. We're just living in it
The cost of borrowing money is moving unrelentingly higher, with profound implications for savers, borrowers and the U.S. government's fiscal outlook.The big picture: The bond market moves over the...
www.axios.com
September 14, 2026
How Warsh can avoid a repeat of July's communications mess
Seven weeks ago, Warsh took questions from the media, and it didn't go well. Markets sold off as he seemed vague and evasive about the reasoning behind the latest interest rate decision. Wednesday,...
www.axios.com
September 13, 2026
The tab is coming due for America's borrowing binge
Americans are facing a rising tab as a multi-decade borrowing binge collides with a spike in energy prices caused by the Iran war.The big picture: Long-term interest rates are surging, as are consu...
www.axios.com
September 3, 2026
Not so fast on rate hikes, some Fed officials say
After Federal Reserve chairman Kevin Warsh's speech in Jackson Hole, the markets penciled in an interest rate hike for the central bank's mid-September meeting. Comments from two influential offici...
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August 31, 2026
Two words that worry global central bankers the most
Around the world, what were once solid lines dividing the responsibilities of those in charge of fiscal policy and monetary policy are being challenged or redrawn.The big picture: If elected govern...
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August 27, 2026
Fed's Warsh under pressure to clarify message in highly anticipated Jackson Hole speech
Federal Reserve chairman Kevin Warsh made clear four weeks ago that he wants to use his speech at the Kansas City Fed's annual symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to take on big, lofty ideas, as op...
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August 26, 2026
Fed governor Lisa Cook: "No legitimate basis for removal" on Trump mortgage claims
Lawyers for Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook have submitted their case for why she cannot legally be fired, as President Trump seeks new avenues for dismissing the Biden appointee for cause.The b...
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August 14, 2026
Retail sales slump in July
Data: Census Bureau; Chart: Neil Irwin/AxiosAmerican consumers have powered the economy forward this year. In July, they took a breather.Why it matters: While the underlying trend in consumer deman...
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August 14, 2026
Consumer sentiment dips, especially among Republicans
Data: University of Michigan; Note: August 2026 number is preliminary; Chart: Neil Irwin/AxiosPublic opinion about the economy appears to be souring further this month, per the preliminary release ...
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August 12, 2026
Quantifying the AI boom crowding-out effect
When investment on the scale of the current AI boom occurs, it inevitably has to come at the expense of something. All the resources devoted to building data centers and developing AI models would ...
www.axios.com
August 10, 2026
How Kevin Warsh is rewiring the Fed
Federal Reserve chairman Kevin Warsh is attempting a high-wire act: He's trying to fundamentally rethink the central bank's approach to guiding the economy, while also using its standard policy too...
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August 6, 2026
Trump may get a big, new tariff authority
A legal cat-and-mouse game has played out over whether the president can use various obscure, untested provisions to impose tariffs. Now, Congress appears on track to give him a big, new — and expl...
www.axios.com
August 3, 2026
The message beneath the yen intervention
The U.S. and Japanese governments have acted together to try to prop up the value of the yen on global currency markets. The way they did it contains a clue about U.S. goals — and has some worrying...
www.axios.com
July 29, 2026
Fed leaves rates steady, with internal dissent
The Federal Reserve left its interest rate target unchanged Wednesday amid significant internal dissent from officials who preferred to raise rates.The big picture: The central bank elected not to ...
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July 29, 2026
Why AI makes central banking tougher
Central bankers, as a rule, try to maintain stable prices, a strong job market and a sound financial system. The AI boom is a complexifier on all three fronts.The big picture: AI is blurring the us...
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July 28, 2026
AI is only "part" of high U.S. productivity growth, says Stripe economist
AI appears to improve workers' efficiency in a number of sectors. The U.S. has experienced a surge in economy-wide productivity in the last couple of years. But the former isn't necessarily driving...
www.axios.com
July 27, 2026
What would a rate hike signal about the new Fed chief's MO?
The Federal Reserve typically telegraphs its interest rate moves in advance, then follows through. This week will provide the clearest evidence yet on whether chairman Kevin Warsh is ending the era...
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July 23, 2026
Investors want a bigger reward for lending money
Data: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, U.S. Treasury Department; Chart: Courtenay Brown/AxiosThe relentless run-up in Treasury yields reflects the globe's new economic reality: It takes a much ri...
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July 22, 2026
A quieter Fed chief means others narrate the story
Federal Reserve chairman Kevin Warsh testified before Congress over two days last week, totaling more than five hours. Yet it was comments from several of his colleagues that gave the clearest pict...
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