WASHINGTON — The IRS said it is going to waive penalty fees for people who failed to pay back taxes that total less than $100,000 per year for tax years 2020 and 2021. Nearly 5 million people, businesses and tax-exempt organizations — most making less than $400,000 per year — will be eligible for the [...]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve last week kept its key interest rate unchanged for a third straight time and its officials signaled that they expect to make three quarter-point cuts to their benchmark rate next year. The Fed's message suggested that it is finished with rate hikes — after the fastest increases in four [...]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The rate of inflation ticked down again last month, with cheaper gas helping further lighten the weight of price increases. At the same time, the latest data on consumer inflation showed that prices in some areas — services such as rents, restaurants and auto insurance — continued to rise. This week’s report [...]

WASHINGTON (AP) — John Littlejohn remembers the days when lots of people had a couple of dollars to spare to buy a copy of Street Sense, the local paper that covers issues related to the homeless and employs homeless individuals as its vendors. Today, he's finding fewer people are walking around with spare change. Even [...]

NEW YORK (AP) — Inflation gradually loosened its grip on Wall Street and the economy in 2023, raising hopes for a gentler Federal Reserve and solid gains for the market next year. Stocks rallied to their best month of the year in November as investors raised their bets that the Fed is done hiking interest [...]

NEW YORK (AP) — The heads of the nation's biggest banks say there are reasons to be concerned about the health of American consumers — particularly poor and low-income borrowers — in their annual appearance in front of Congress this week. The CEOs of JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo and five other large [...]

NEW YORK (AP) — Most business economists think the nation’s economy could avoid a recession next year, even if the job market ends up weakening under the weight of high interest rates, according to a survey released earlier this week. About 24 percent of economists surveyed by the National Association for Business Economics said they [...]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Several housing economists are projecting that mortgage rates will ease moderately next year, though the forecasts call for the average rate on a 30-year home loan to remain above 6 percent. While lower rates could help bring more buyers off the sidelines, the projected declines are unlikely to encourage homeowners who [...]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure cooled in October, the latest sign that price pressures are waning in the face of high interest rates and moderating economic growth. Last week’s report from the Commerce Department said prices were unchanged from September to October, down from a 0.4 percent rise the previous month. [...]