CNBC Economy

Powell, one of the world's most influential economists, has not yet met with members of the homeless encampment near the Fed in Washington.

As expected, the U.S. central bank decided to keep short-term interest rates anchored near zero as it buys at least $120 billion of bonds each month.

This is a comparison of Wednesday's Federal Open Market Committee statement with the one issued after the Fed's previous policy-making meeting on March 17.

Lower mortgage rates are not prompting homeowners or potential homebuyers to contact their lenders, as other obstacles stand in their way.

More Americans say they approve of the $1.9 trillion Covid bill Biden signed last month, and his $2 trillion infrastructure plan is already popular.

The CNBC Fed Survey for April finds 76% of respondents believe President Biden will choose Powell again.

Wall Street forecasts the Fed won't reduce its $120 billion of asset purchases until January, three months later than predicted in CNBC's March survey.

Home price gains continue to outpace expectations, as tight supply and strong demand spur bidding wars.

Economic growth could slow, and inflation is likely to see at least a momentary bump higher as the semiconductor shortage escalates, economists say.

Low supply continues to push prices ever higher. The median price of an existing home sold in March was $329,100, a 17.2% increase from March 2020.

Weekly unemployment claims fell to a new pandemic-era low, suggesting the labor market's recovery is picking up steam.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance totaled 547,000 last week, the Labor Department said, below the 603,000 Dow Jones estimate.

David Roche, president of investment firm Independent Strategy, said yields could double and that would bring markets "to the crunch point."

A sharp drop in mortgage interest rates sent homeowners and potential homebuyers to their lenders.

Jacob Lew, Treasury secretary from 2013 to 2017, said China's Belt and Road Initiative gained traction as the U.S. under Trump retreated from the world stage.

The pandemic has shaken up the ranking of the world's largest economies after sending many countries into their worst economic recessions in recent history.

The path beyond this rocket-fueled year looks far less clear.

Many Americans have received three rounds of stimulus checks and enhanced unemployment benefits since the pandemic began, helping forestall a wave of defaults.

Google reported last week that the search "When is the housing market going to crash?" had spiked 2,450% in the past month.

The consumer price index rose 0.6% in March from the previous month and 2.6% from a year ago, according to the Department of Labor.