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Consumer sentiment soared in early June, rising for the first time in six months and posting its strongest monthly gain since January 2024, according to preliminary data released Friday by the University of Michigan. The university’s closely watched index of consumer sentiment jumped to 60.5 in the first half of June, up from 52.2 the prior month—a 16 percent gain that beat every estimate in a Wall Street Journal survey of economists. The expectations sub-index surged more than 21 percent, the biggest one-month gain since late 2023. The sharp rebound in optimism follows weeks of steady economic data, including soft...

President Trump’s job approval rating has surged to its highest number since he was inaugurated in January. Currently, Trump’s job approval rating sits at 54 percent, with only 46 percent disapproving. This ties his all-time high this year (in this poll) and is a five-point boost in approval since late March. This poll of 1,002 registered voters was taken between April 10-14, the days during the so-called stock market turmoil after the president instituted the tariff increases he ran on, which appear to have brought dozens of countries to the negotiating table. “For all the events of the past ten...

Six weeks after voters in Germany went to the polls for the federal elections, there appears to be growing dissatisfaction with the outcome, as more Germans shift their support to the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. According to the latest survey from Insa on behalf of the Bild newspaper, the AfD has soared to a record 24 per cent support. This puts the upstart party on par with the election-winning ‘Union’ of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU), which collectively also now stand at 24 per cent in support.

The factory sector came roaring back in President Trump’s first full month in office. Industrial production in the United States surged in February, rising 0.7 percent, more than triple the 0.2 percent increase economists had expected. The latest data from the Federal Reserve marks a significant expansion in industrial activity, with total output reaching its highest level on record. Manufacturing output, which accounts for roughly three-fourths of total industrial production, rose 0.9 percent, the largest monthly gain in a year. A particularly notable driver of February’s expansion was the auto sector, where motor vehicle and parts production jumped 8.5 percent....

Inflation in the United States surged higher in January. The Department of Labor said Wednesday that the consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.5 percent in January from the prior month, much more than expected. Compared with a year ago, consumer prices are up three percent. Economists had expected the monthly pace of inflation to decline to 0.3 percent after prices rose 0.4 percent in December. The median forecast called for a 2.9 percent gain over the past 12-months, matching the prior month’s year-over-year gain. Core inflation, a metric that excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose by 0.4 percent for...

Homebuilder confidence surged in November as the election of Donald Trump and a Republican sweep of the House and Senate boosted optimism about the housing market. The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) said its monthly confidence index rose to 46, the highest level since April. This was higher than even the most bullish forecasts and three points above the October level. The sentiment boost reflects builders’ beliefs that the incoming administration and its Republican allies on Capitol Hill will adopt policies to facilitate increased construction activity. “With the elections now in the rearview mirror, builders are expressing increasing confidence...

Stock Chart - Five week performance - $12 to $46 - Somebody thinks Donald J. Trump is going to win the election?

A new COVID-19 variant called KP.3 has surged to dominance in the United States, according to recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).1 As of June 8, KP.3 accounted for 25% of cases, per the CDC. The variant has surpassed the previous dominant variant, KP.2, which now makes up about 22% of cases. Both have knocked down JN.1, the top strain circulating this past winter. With SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID, mutating consistently, it’s natural to be concerned each time a new variant rises to prominence. Here’s what you need to know about KP.3, including...

COVID is back. But then, it never really left. And the respiratory disease’s late-summer resurgence might be a preview of an even bigger surge this winter. Experts say the latest bump in infections, hospitalizations, and deaths in the United States and other countries, in the fourth year of the novel coronavirus pandemic, was inevitable three years ago—when anti-science extremists all over the world began politicizing the then-brand-new vaccines.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) approval rating has surged as he finishes his first full week as Speaker of the House, according to the latest Economist/YouGov survey. Before November’s midterm elections, McCarthy’s approval rating sat at 27 percent among all Americans. Now, 36 percent of Americans approve of McCarthy’s job performance, which matches former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) approval rating in the days leading up to the midterms.

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Shubham Chandra knows how dangerous the coronavirus can be: He lost his dad during the pandemic. So when he cleared customs at Newark Liberty International Airport and saw people offering anonymous COVID-19 testing, he was happy to volunteer. “It’s a minimum amount of effort to help a lot of people,” said the 27-year-old New York City man, who had just stepped off a plane from Cancun, Mexico. The airport testing is part of the government’s early warning system for detecting new variants, which began expanding recently in the wake of a COVID-19 surge in China.

The flu season is off to an alarming start. Hospitalizations from influenza are at their highest levels in the last decade, and case counts are rising across the country. Meanwhile, vaccination rates have fallen well below historical trends. This, plus a surge of other respiratory viruses, has contributed to what some are calling a pediatric care crisis in many parts of the country. Thankfully, some members of Congress are taking long-overdue action to improve the way our country prepares for and responds to seasonal and pandemic flu. Public health experts typically look to the Southern Hemisphere for a signal of...

(NewsNation) — Concerns are growing nationwide for rapidly increasing cases of what health officials have deemed a tripledemic: the flu, RSV and COVID-19, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is once again urging the public to wear face masks indoors. According to the agency’s Dec. 8 report, 13.7 percent of Americans now live in communities now rated “high” COVID-19 Community Levels, up from 4.9 percent of the population last week. An additional 38.1 percent of Americans are in “medium” areas and 48.2 percent are in “low” areas. A number of major cities are now mulling a return to...

Far-left Politico stopped juicing its generic tracking poll, and suddenly things aren’t looking so hot for Democrats. Politico is not only a joke; as you’re about to see, it’s a laughably transparent joke. For more than 18 months, Politico has tracked likely voters in the generic ballot, and only now — one week before the election — are Democrats not in the lead. NEW: For the first time in Morning Consult tracking among likely voters, Democrats do not lead Republicans on the generic ballot Sept 29: Democrats 49% (D+5) Republicans 44% Today: Republicans 46% (=) Democrats 46%https://t.co/yK3xtyw6On pic.twitter.com/3y4i5SO4Qs — InteractivePolls...

Countries with the world’s highest vaccination rates—including four of the top five most vaccinated—are fighting to contain coronavirus outbreaks that are, on a per-capita basis, higher than the surge devastating India, a trend that has experts questioning the efficacy of some vaccines (especially China’s Sinopharm) and the wisdom of easing restrictions even with most of the population vaccinated.

WOW! Donald Trump surges to 60% in New York state! Leads Ted Cruz by 46 points!NY1 reported: Donald Trump has a commanding 43-point lead in the New York Republican presidential primary, and Hillary Clinton has a 13-point advantage in the Democratic primary, according to a NY1/Baruch College poll released Monday night. Running in his home state, Trump is supported by 60 percent of likely Republican voters, the poll found. Ohio Gov. John Kasich and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas trail far behind with 17 percent and 14 percent, respectively. “Trump is just killing it,” said Baruch College pollster Mickey...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is enjoying a surge in the latest opinion polls of Israeli voters. The Jerusalem Post reports that its latest poll shows Bibi’s party, the Likud, is leading the race for the first time in weeks. Other polls agree, and show the Likud leading its rival, the Zionist Union, which is a combination of the Labor and Hatnua parties. The Post attributes Netanyahu’s improved showing to the cross-border conflict with Hezbollah, which attacked Israeli soldiers earlier this week, killing two. The attack was a retaliation, likely orchestrated by Iran, for Israel’s strike on a Hezbollah convoy...

Riding a wave of momentum from his trio of victories on Tuesday Rick Santorum has opened up a wide lead in PPP's newest national poll. He's at 38% to 23% for Mitt Romney, 17% for Newt Gingrich, and 13% for Ron Paul. Part of the reason for Santorum's surge is his own high level of popularity. 64% of voters see him favorably to only 22% with a negative one. But the other, and maybe more important, reason is that Republicans are significantly souring on both Romney and Gingrich. Romney's favorability is barely above water at 44/43, representing a 23 point...

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. consumers increased their debt in November by a seasonally adjusted $20.4 billion, the largest increase since November 2001, the Federal Reserve reported Monday. Monthly debt rose at a 10% annual rate in November, a much faster pace than had been expected by Wall Street economists.

These polls dropped last evening. Most concerning to Team Romney? The numbers from the one early state in which Newt isn't ahead: Newt Gingrich has opened up a double-digit lead over Mitt Romney in three early states and significantly narrowed the gap in New Hampshire, the state that has been the firewall for the former Massachusetts governor’s campaign, according to a set of new polls by CNN and Time magazine. In Florida, a state where Romney’s campaign has put early emphasis, Gingrich is leading Romney by a 2-to-1 margin, according to the poll by CNN/Time/ORC Internatonal. If the election were...