Economy News
The Daily Signal reports on economy news with analysis and commentary on growth, recession risks, employment, and financial trends.
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- Opinion
US-China Talks at G-20 Unlikely to End Trade Disputes
President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, are set to meet on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Osaka, Japan, this weekend. The two will try to unpack what’s going on in the U.S.-China trade dispute, why negotiations have become difficult, and how the two sides can come to a…Riley Walters -
- Opinion
Most G-20 Countries Aren’t Economically Free. The US Can Help Change That.
Although much of the focus at this weekend’s G-20 summit in Osaka, Japan, will be on the U.S-China impasse on trade and other issues, more attention should be paid to the sorry record that most G-20 countries have when it comes to economic freedom. Each year, The Heritage Foundation ranks countries according to their levels…James M. Roberts -
- Opinion
Treasury Department Just Fixed a Situation That Threatened School Choice
Lawmakers intended with the 2017 tax cuts not only to promote economic growth and job creation and to allow families to keep more of their hard-earned money, but also to make the federal tax code more neutral toward state tax policy. But state-based tax credit scholarship programs got unintentionally caught up in the broader reform….Adam Michel -
- Opinion
Weak Jobs Report Shows the Cost of Trade Wars
The Bureau of Labor Statistics released a lackluster jobs report on Friday, falling short of most expert predictions, and continuing to make the case that bad economic policy, like tariffs, will not serve U.S. interests in the long term. The report showed a gain of 76,000 jobs, falling well below the 180,000 predicted by experts….Timothy Doescher -
- Opinion
Economic Freedom Key to Ensuring We Have Dynamic Entrepreneurs
THE HAGUE, Netherlands–Proactively promoting entrepreneurship, innovation, and economic freedom continues to be a critical pillar of U.S. engagement with the world. One sign of this is the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, which the United States co-hosts this week with the Netherlands. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte opened the 2019 summit…Anthony B. Kim -
- Opinion
Trump’s Proposed Budget Adopts 61% of Heritage Proposals
“Can Congress Avoid a Debt Default and $125 Billion in Spending Cuts?” That’s the scary headline of a New York Times article by Emily Cochrane this week. The headline refers to the looming debt limit deadline, when the Treasury will run out of authority to continue borrowing, absent a change to the law. The timing…Romina Boccia -
- News
3 Things to Know About a Disaster Spending Bill Conservatives Couldn’t Stop
A $19.1 billion disaster aid bill that faced significant opposition from conservative Republicans passed the House on Monday evening by a lopsided vote of 354-58. Only Republicans voted against the measure, which includes funding in the aftermath of hurricanes, wildfires, and other storms as well as money to help Puerto Rico rebuild from hurricane damage…Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
Americans Need Answers As New Tariffs Hit
The long U.S.-China trade war is about to hit another mile marker. New tariffs, announced in May on $200 billion worth of imports from China, and $60 billion worth of exports to China, go into effect June 1. Tariffs are a tax on American consumers and businesses, and the administration has already begun a process…Sarah Brown -
- Opinion
10 Ways Heritage’s Budget Plan Cuts Unfair Handouts and Waste
The federal government has more programs than anyone can ever hope to count. Each year it spends trillions of dollars, much of which is wasted or used for politically connected groups. This has shamefully saddled America with a disastrous debt of $22 trillion—the equivalent of $173,000 for every household in America. All of this might…David Ditch -
- Opinion
The Blueprint for a Balanced Budget That Can Still Cut Taxes
If Congress doesn’t act, Americans’ taxes will automatically increase in the coming years. The 2017 tax cuts are temporary, and some of those taxes are scheduled to start increasing in three years’ time. Last year, American families of four saw their taxes cut by an average of $3,000. The typical taxpayers benefited from getting to…Adam Michel -
- News
Federal Transportation Officials Launch Probe of Chick-Fil-A Bans
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced Friday that it will investigate whether two airports violated federal law or transportation regulations by denying a contract to Chick-fil-A on religious grounds. “The Department has received complaints alleging discrimination by two airport operators against a private company due to the expression of the owner’s religious beliefs,” DOT said…Molly Prince -
- Opinion
Heritage’s ‘Blueprint for Balance’ Has Real Fixes for Our Spending Crisis
Among the many things that frustrate Americans about Washington, D.C., is the unwillingness—not inability, but unwillingness—to solve problems. One of many examples is the U.S. national debt, now more than $22 trillion and counting. As Heritage Foundation President Kay Coles James has written, “The federal budget is at the core of our political system. Everything…Cal Thomas -
- Opinion
Skyrocketing Debt Too Important to Be Paired With Spending Deal
Two major issues that Congress will be forced to confront in the coming weeks and months are the debt limit and the future of the Budget Control Act discretionary spending caps. A report from The Hill indicates that negotiations are underway between Congress and the Trump administration to combine a two-year budget caps deal with…Justin Bogie -
- News
Heritage Foundation Blueprint Would Balance Budget While Cutting Taxes, Stressing Defense
Balancing the budget while reducing taxes and prioritizing national defense are the main goals in a blueprint for smarter government spending released Monday by The Heritage Foundation. The think tank’s new “Blueprint for Balance” “lays out an agenda both for our long-term governing vision [and] what our conservative policy priorities [are] that we want lawmakers…Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
3 Reasons Why USDA Shouldn’t Give Special Aid to Farmers Hit by Tariffs
Last July, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that it was going to provide $12 billion in aid to help farmers with the “trade damage” from numerous trade disputes. That was supposed to be a one-time relief package, but there was little reason at that time to think it would stop with the $12 billion….Daren Bakst -
- Opinion
Obstacles to a Trade Deal Come From Both Beijing and Washington
It’s been almost two years since the U.S. and China entered negotiations, and those talks are still dragging on. No one knows the true progress of these talks except for what’s been reported through anonymous sources, or the occasional update from the White House. But as things stand, the talks have not sufficed to stave…Riley Walters -
- Opinion
He Was an Antifa Activist. Then He Took an Economics Class.
Gabriel Nadales is that rare young adult who became more conservative in college. Once an activist on the left, he started questioning his beliefs after studying economics—and now he promotes free speech at colleges. Read the interview, posted below, or listen to the podcast: Or watch the interview: We also cover these stories: President Donald…Rob Bluey -
- News
Raising Budget Caps Is ‘Last Thing We Need’ With $22 Trillion Debt, Lawmaker Says
Republicans in the conservative House Freedom Caucus are opposing Democrats’ attempts to increase discretionary spending despite a national debt of more than $22 trillion. “Our country is $22 trillion in debt,” the group said in a statement released Friday. “The spending caps are one of the few tools left to slow down the runaway growth…Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
Here’s My Plan to Fix Student Debt Without Raiding Taxpayers
Confounded by rising piles of student debt, cash-strapped graduates across the country are realizing that their degrees don’t offer enough bang for the buck. It’s time we rethink the way students pay for college. College is an investment. The conventional wisdom tells us to borrow for college now and be proportionally rewarded in the job…Rep. Mark Green -
- Opinion
David McCullough’s ‘The Pioneers’ Is a Rebuke to Our Entitlement Mentality
In a country preoccupied with presidential candidates preaching extreme liberalism and even unabashed socialism comes America’s greatest living historian, David McCullough, with a new and needed book. It’s called “The Pioneers,” and the subtitle is its theme: “The Heroic Story of the Settlers Who Brought the American Ideal West” (Simon & Schuster). Nowadays, while students…Cal Thomas