Amid Labor Shortages, Manufacturing Workers Are Asking For Childcare Benefits. Employers Aren’t Budging.

by James O'Donnell | Apr 2, 2022 | Durable Goods, Economy, Manufacturing

Manufacturers are doing a lot to attract workers, like offering higher pay and better shifts. But affordable childcare is rarely part of the bargain. (Photo by Kiefer Likens) Cheryl Husk is a rodding operator at Century Aluminum, the smelting plant in Hawesville,...

Manufacturers Received Fewer Orders in February. That Might Give Them Time to Catch Up.

by James O'Donnell | Mar 29, 2022 | Durable Goods, Economy, Manufacturing

Orders for long lasting goods like cars, trucks and machinery fell in February, but the decline is far from a warning sign that the economy is slowing down abruptly. New orders for durable goods, which are items lasting longer than three years, fell 2.2% in February,...

A Rise In Durable Goods Bodes Well for American Manufacturing

by James O'Donnell | Mar 2, 2022 | Durable Goods, Economy

Orders for long-lasting goods like ships and turbines rose sharply in January, a sign that manufacturing continues to be a strong engine of the economy despite supply chain slowdowns. New orders for durable goods, which are items lasting longer than three years,...

New Car Sales, the Economic Tarot Card

by Rosemary Misdary | Apr 2, 2019 | Autos, Durable Goods, Economy

After four consecutive years of record-high vehicle sales, manufacturers will face a slump this year in new vehicle sales. Automakers are off to a rough start this year. January and February sales were down 2.6 percent, the lowest two-month sales since 2009. Sales...

Visa Reform Could Bust Manufacturing

by William Mathis | May 23, 2017 | Durable Goods, Economy, Featured, Jobs, Newest

Five years ago, Rishvanth Kora, 31, was about to finish a graduate program in electrical engineering at the University of Kentucky, when he finally got a job offer. The Fortune 500 manufacturing company Cummins wanted a worker with an advanced engineering degree badly...

5 Things to Watch in the Personal Income and Outlays Report

by Teddy Grant | Apr 30, 2017 | Autos, Durable Goods, Economy, Jobs, Newest, Personal Income

For the first two months of 2017, personal income rose 0.4 percent in a sign that consumers are earning more. On Monday, The Bureau of Economic Analysis will release its Personal Income and Outlays report and many analysts are predicting an increase of 0.3 percent,...