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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news
In Effort to Boost Affordability, Trump Signs Proclamation Importing Foreign Beef
President Donald Trump signed a proclamation Wednesday afternoon to increase foreign imports of beef in an effort to lower beef prices ahead of midterms. Trump is temporarily removing tariffs on 300,000 metric tons of imported lean beef trimmings for 90 days. According to the proclamation, the countries supplying the beef would sell it at 25% below… -
opinion
Housing Is Too Expensive. Blame Your Local Tree Ordinance.
Matthew Bernard wanted to build a home. He bought a small lot in Oakland, California, and began clearing several diseased and fallen trees that the local fire department had identified as hazards. The result was a $915,000 “mitigation fee” from the city of Oakland—nearly five times the value of the lot itself. Under Oakland’s tree… -
news
Support for Beaver’s Mini Mart Continues After Buc-ee’s Sparks Outrage
Buc-ee’s opened its first Ohio location less than five months ago, but that excitement looks to have waned with the Texas gas station chain going after a local mini-mart that’s been a staple of Beavercreek, Ohio, for years. Earlier this month, Buc-ee’s put out a press release regarding a lawsuit against Beaver’s Mini Mart, which… -
opinion
Victor Davis Hanson: Why Trump Gets Results While Diplomats Fail
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of the latest edition of “Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words” from Daily Signal senior contributor Victor Davis Hanson. Subscribe to Victor Davis Hanson’s own YouTube channel to watch past episodes. Victor Davis Hanson: I think Donald Trump has got, as I said earlier, an anaconda Civil War… -
opinion
The Real Reason Young Families Can’t Find Homes to Buy
President Donald Trump is considering a simple way to help America’s brutal housing market: Stop punishing people for selling their homes. Trump administration officials recently floated cutting the capital gains tax on home sales, potentially removing one obstacle that keeps longtime homeowners from selling and younger families from buying. It’s an idea worth pursuing. But it also… -
news
Canada Announces Retaliatory Tariffs; Trump Proposes ‘Lake America’
Canada is retaliating against the United States with new tariffs and President Donald Trump is floating changing the name of Lake Ontario to “Lake America” in the latest salvos in the weekslong trade dispute between Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. “The United States is giving serious consideration to changing the name of Lake… -
opinion
Victor Davis Hanson: Don’t Trust the Midterm Polls
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of today’s video from Daily Signal senior contributor Victor Davis Hanson. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to see more of his videos. Hello, this is Victor Davis Hanson for the Daily Signal. Let’s have a periodic check on the status of the midterms that we’re now less than 80… -
news
Republican Ranchers in Congress Urge Trump to Put American Ranchers First
President Donald Trump announced a new deal to address the rising cost of beef, support American ranchers, and rebuild the smallest herd in modern history. Republican members of Congress are now criticizing Friday’s announcement, calling it a temporary solution that could hurt American ranchers in the long run. “For the next 90 days, the United… -
news
JD Vance, Ohio Figures Give Rousing Middletown Speech on Manufacturing Investments
Vice President JD Vance spoke at a factory in Middletown, Ohio, on Friday, his first appearance in his hometown since being elected to the nation’s second-highest office. In addition to sharing sentiments about his papaw working at that same factory, the Cleveland-Cliffs Middletown Works steel plant, Vance spoke on what the Trump administration is doing… -
news
Treasury Sec to Unveil ‘Economic D-Day’ Against Iran
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will announce massive new sanctions against Iran on Monday, a move he likened to “economic D-Day.” In an op-ed published in the Financial Times, Bessent said he is launching the “single greatest financial offensive ever marshalled against an adversary.” He said any nation that associates with Iran will face isolation. “Iran’s… -
opinion
Cracker Barrel Helps Itself to Humble Pie After Catastrophic CEO
THE WASHINGTON STAND—A year ago this month, America was in a full-blown uproar over the radical makeover of a beloved restaurant chain known for its therapeutic chicken and dumplings. Now, 12 months after Cracker Barrel’s disastrous rebrand, karma (and the unemployment office) has come calling for CEO Julie Masino. The longtime restaurant executive is out… -
news
‘Freedom Doesn’t Just Ring, It Revs’: IndyCar Brings America’s 250th Celebration to DC
WASHINGTON—This weekend, the streets of the nation’s capital will be taken over by one of the most American sports, IndyCar. The Freedom 250 Grand Prix will be a 250-mile race through the heart of the city, circling the National Mall and passing monuments and government buildings. It is set to bring more than 100,000 fans,… -
opinion
Ending the Welfare State as We Know It
President Bill Clinton signed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, otherwise known as welfare reform, into law 30 years ago on Aug. 22, 1996. The following is an excerpt from Lee Edwards’ book “The Power of Ideas”. Edwards served as a distinguished fellow at The Heritage Foundation and died in 2024. In the… -
opinion
You May Not Care About the National Debt, but the Debt Cares About You
The national debt just crossed $40 trillion, months ahead of schedule. For many Americans, though, that sentence lands with a thud rather than a jolt. That’s unfortunate because the debt matters far more than people understand, and it’s already helping fuel today’s cost-of-living crisis. Things will only get worse if we ignore the problem. Six… -
opinion
Victor Davis Hanson: The American Tech Boom No One Is Talking About
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of today’s video from Daily Signal senior contributor Victor Davis Hanson. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to see more of his videos. Hello, this is Victor Davis Hanson for The Daily Signal. During this midterm summer and fall, don’t fall for the doom and gloom that we hear… -
opinion
Victor Davis Hanson: Blue States Are Betting Your Life on Illegal Truck Drivers
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of the latest edition of “Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words” from Daily Signal senior contributor Victor Davis Hanson. Subscribe to Victor Davis Hanson’s own YouTube channel to watch past episodes. Jack Fowler: Twenty-one states and D.C. sue Trump administration to protect illegal alien drivers from the feds. This… -
news
Democrats’ Minimum Wage Hike Would Make Life Less Affordable: Study
A new study estimates that Democrats’ proposal to increase the federal minimum wage to $25/hour would cost the U.S. economy 5 million jobs and especially harm workers ages 16 to 24. “Politicians on the Left are making empty promises that minimum wage hikes will magically fix the cost of living crisis without doing their research,”… -
news
‘Grifting Grandmothers,’ COVID-19 Scammers Among Families That Cost Taxpayers $50 Million
About $50 million in federal fraud could have been avoided if grants were blocked for people living with convicted fraudsters, according to a new Senate report. The office of Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, chairwoman of the Senate Small Business Committee as well as the Senate DOGE Caucus, identified 15 “fraudster families” that received millions in… -
news
US Weekly Jobless Claims Dip in Latest Week
REUTERS—The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits slipped last week, suggesting that the labor market remains stable despite a surprise drop in employment in July and leaving the Federal Reserve in position to keep its focus on containing inflation. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 206,000 for… -
analysis
3rd State Strikes Latest Blow Against Media Blacklists
South Carolina is the latest state to push back against media-rating organizations that have helped blacklist conservative news outlets. In the 2026-27 state budget, lawmakers included a provision barring state agencies from spending taxpayer dollars with advertising companies that use media-monitoring systems to determine which news outlets receive advertising dollars. Gov. Henry McMaster signed the…