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Groton Daily Independent
Monday, Dec. 04, 2017 ~ Vol. 25 - No. 148 ~ 40 of 43
June 11.8
July 17.9
Aug. 13.1
Sept. 20.8
Oct. (est.) 16.8
Source: FactSet
ALL ABOUT JOBS
Economists predict hiring in the U.S. slowed last month after a sharp increase the previous month. They expect the Labor Department will report Friday that nonfarm employers added 191,500 jobs in
November. Employers added 261,000 jobs in October as many businesses reopened in Texas and Florida after closing in the aftermath of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
Nonfarm payrolls, monthly change, seasonally adjusted: June 210,000
July 138,000
Aug. 208,000
Sept. 18,000
Oct. 261,000
Nov. (est.) 191,500 Source: FactSet
Economists expect modest boost from tax cuts By PAUL WISEMAN, AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Economists expect a tax overhaul to provide a modest boost to the U.S. economy but are increasingly worried that a rewrite of the North American Free Trade Agreement will take a toll on growth.
The National Association of Business Economics survey found that forecasters expect tax law changes to add 0.2 percentage points of growth to the U.S. economy, down slightly from what they expected in the previous NABE survey in September. The survey was taken Nov. 6-15, before the Senate passed a major tax overhaul early Saturday.
Forty-six percent of 51 panelists believe the renegotiation of NAFTA will do at least some damage to the American economy, up from 27 percent in September. NAFTA has expanded trade between the United States, Mexico and Canada, but President Donald Trump calls it a job-killing disaster and is demanding a better deal.
Talks to revamp NAFTA began in August but have bogged down over the United States’ demands, includ- ing its insistence a new deal bring down America’s trade de cits and guarantee that more auto production moves to America.
The NABE economists expect the U.S. economy to expand 2.2 percent this year and 2.5 percent in 2018. They expect unemployment to match October’s 4.1 percent throughout the rst half of 2018, and then slip to 4 percent in the second half.
They also expect in ation to remain below the Federal Reserve’s 2 percent target next year. But they still expect the Fed, which has already raised interest rates twice this year, to raise rates again in December and to approve three more hikes in 2018.
3 reasons why CVS would want to buy health insurer Aetna By TOM MURPHY, AP Health Writer
A CVS-Aetna combination could create a health colossus that would reach deeper into the average cus- tomer’s life to manage care and cut costs, according to analysts who follow the companies.
Drugstore chain and pharmacy bene ts manager CVS Health Corp. has agreed to buy the nation’s third-