Will you hail Trump?

[Legion Troll]

Drivers will use 2.2 percent more gasoline this year between Memorial Day and Labor Day than they did in 2015, according to Patrick DeHaan, a senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy, an online group that surveys motorists and tracks prices nationwide.

With gasoline costs falling to an 11-year low, U.S. consumers may well breach the all-time high of 9.7 million barrels a day burned in 2007, he said.

"In a typical year, gas prices rise 50 cents a gallon before peaking before Memorial Day," said Michael Green, a spokesman for AAA in Washington.

While prices have risen this year as well, they started at such a low level, hitting $1.70 in February, that drivers can expect them to be at or near the lowest point for the start of the Memorial Day weekend in more than a decade. And because prices tend to peak during this weekend, they’ll probably remain low the rest of the summer as well, Green said.

Retail gasoline prices in the U.S. are expected to average $2.32 a gallon on Monday, GasBuddy predicts. That’s a 37 percent drop from just two years ago, when Americans paid an average $3.66 a gallon.





http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-27/forget-the-staycation-low-cost-gasoline-revives-u-s-road-trip

 

[Legion Troll]

Corporate profits rebounded, amid signs of stronger growth in the spring months.

Gross domestic product, a broad measure of goods and services produced across the U.S. economy, expanded at a 0.8% seasonally adjusted annual rate in the first three months of 2016, the Commerce Department said Friday.

That was up from the agency’s initial estimate last month, which pegged the first quarter’s growth rate at 0.5%. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected growth would be revised up to a 1.0% pace.

“First-quarter growth still looks disappointing, but the most recent data indicate that activity is bouncing back solidly in” the second quarter, Barclays economist Jesse Hurwitz said.

Economic activity had expanded at a 1.4% pace in the fourth quarter of 2015. On an annual basis, GDP grew 2.0% in the first quarter, identical to the fourth quarter’s annual growth rate.

Revisions were modest. Compared with last month’s report, the latest figures showed a larger gain for residential investment and smaller drags on overall growth from private inventories and foreign trade.

Friday’s report also offered the first official estimate of U.S. corporate profits during the first three months of the year. Profits after tax, without inventory valuation and capital consumption adjustments, rose at a 1.9% rate from the fourth quarter.

The rebound came after two consecutive quarters of falling profits.



http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-first-quarter-gdp-revised-higher-corporate-profits-rose-1464352524

 

[Legion Troll]

The unemployment rate for April was 4.8 percent, which is down four-tenths of a percentage point from 5.2 percent in March, according to the Department of Labor.

The rate declined as employers created more jobs and laid off fewer workers, the agency said.


http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/morning_call/2016/05/metro-atlanta-s-unemployment-rate-declines.html

 

[Legion Troll]

Americans turned more optimistic about the economy in May than the previous month, buoyed by low interest rates on home and car purchases.

The University of Michigan says its index of consumer sentiment rose to 94.7 in May, the highest in nearly a year. That's up from 89 in April.

A more optimistic consumer is typically more likely to spend, which drives greater economic growth. Consumer spending accounts for roughly 70 percent of U.S. economic activity. The economy slowed to a crawl in the first three months of this year, growing just 0.8 percent at an annual rate. Yet most analysts expect growth to rebound in the April-June quarter.




http://www.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2016-05-27/us-consumer-sentiment-jumps-in-may-to-highest-in-year

 

[Legion Troll]

U.S. stocks are making small gains Friday as drug companies and consumer products makers trade higher. Valeant Pharmaceuticals is rising on reports it rejected a buyout offer, and beauty products retailer Ulta jumped after it reported strong first-quarter results and raised its projections for the year.

Stocks are closing in on their best week since the beginning of March.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 21 points, or 0.1 percent, to 17,849 as of 11:25 a.m. Eastern time.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index added 4 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,094.

The Nasdaq composite index picked up 18 points, or 0.4 percent, to 4,919. After big gains earlier in the week, stocks are on pace for their biggest weekly advance since the week that started on Feb. 29.




http://www.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2016-05-27/us-stocks-edge-higher-led-by-consumer-companies-and-banks

 

[Legion Troll]

The U.S. dollar and world stock indexes edged higher on Friday.

The dollar index .DXY was up 0.40 percent and on track for its strongest monthly performance since November.


http://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-markets-idUSKCN0YI01R

 

[Legion Troll]

Verizon and striking unions have reached a four-year contract and employees will likely return to work next week, labor and union officials say.

Nearly 40,000 Verizon employees who are members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and Communications Workers of America went on strike more than six weeks ago.

“Today, I am pleased to announce that the parties have reached an agreement in principle on a four-year contract, resolving the open issues in the ongoing labor dispute between Verizon’s workers, unions, and management," said Labor Secretary Thomas Perez.



http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/news/2016/05/27/labor-secretary-verizon-unions-reach-accord/85044792/

 

[Legion Troll]

Unemployment fell last month to its lowest level in nearly nine years, the Department of Labor and Workforce Development said Thursday.

The jobless rate dropped in April to 4.1 percent — the lowest rate since August 2007.

Unemployment could fall even more this year.


http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/business/aroundregion/story/2016/may/27/chattanooga-jobless-rate-falls-9-year-low/368042/

 

[Legion Troll]

Discount retailer Big Lots posted first-quarter results on Friday, May 27, that included its strongest sales growth pace in years.

In addition, earnings soared as the company held the line on price cuts and kept operating expenses in check.



http://www.fool.com/investing/2016/05/27/big-lots-inc-posts-highest-quarterly-growth-pace-s.aspx

 

[Legion Troll]

Restaurants, theme parks, and museums are saying thank you to members of our armed services with loads of freebies over Memorial Day weekend.

In most cases, all you need to do is show a military ID verifying your status as a veteran or active-duty military member in order to get a free meal on Memorial Day, free admission to theme parks throughout the weekend, and free entrance to museums for the entire summer. Discounts sometimes extend to family members as well.



http://time.com/money/4348101/memorial-day-free-food-admissions-veterans-military-2016/?xid=homepage