Economy

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez criticized President Biden after he shot down a proposal from progressive Democrats to eliminate $50,000 in student loan debt, saying the president's arguments against acting unilaterally on the matter "just don't hold water."

Americans who have not received their coronavirus stimulus check payments, or who received the incorrect amount, have an opportunity to claim the missing money now that the 2020 tax season is officially underway.

The panel on Thursday evening approved its $940 billion piece of Biden's proposal on a 25-18 party-line vote

Fewer Americans sought unemployment benefits last week, lowering jobless claims to 793,000, evidence that job cuts remain high despite a substantial decline in new viral infections.

The vote was 219-209 to adopt the budget framework that the Senate approved early Friday morning thanks to a tie-breaking vote cast by Vice President Kamala Harris. 

U.S employers added just 49,000 jobs in January, a sign that that the viral pandemic retains a tight grip on the economy nearly a year after it triggered a painful recession.

The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell to 779,000 last week, a historically high total that shows that a sizable number of people are still losing jobs to the viral pandemic.

The resolution called on President Biden to take executive action to "administratively cancel up to $50,000 in Federal student loan debt for Federal student loan borrowers" using "existing legal authorities" under the Higher Education Act of 1965.

A hopeful view is gaining steam that as vaccinations reach a critical mass, perhaps around midyear, and the government provides further stimulus, the economy and the job market will strengthen much faster than they did after previous recessions.

The rush into silver futures Monday created confusion amid Wall Street chaos, with some retail traders on Reddit calling the surge in commodity prices a “false flag.”

Robinhood, the online trading platform at the center of a speculative frenzy involving shares of GameStop, AMC and other flailing companies, told its customers Thursday that it would be allowing “limited buys” of these companies starting Friday.

Amid the recent astronomical surge in value of shares of struggling companies like GameStop and AMC, trading strategies like short selling and short squeezing have been trending all over social media, leaving many scrambling to keep up. Here’s what you need to know to understand what’s going on.

Robinhood and other online trading platforms moved to restrict trading in GameStop and other stocks that have soared recently due to rabid buying by smaller investors.

Trading volume has surged in shares of GameStop, AMC Entertainment, as well as Bed Bath & Beyond and BlackBerry, stunning Wall Street firms betting that those stocks would fall.

Lowe's announced that it will reward all of its full-time hourly employees with $300 bonuses for their work during the COVID-19 pandemic, while part-time employees will get $150. The company also plans to hire 50,000 more workers for the spring.

Stuck in the grip of a viral pandemic, the U.S. economy grew at a 4% annual rate in the final three months of 2020 and shrank last year by the largest amount in 74 years.