William Sluis

PRODUCER PRICES Inflation in focus As Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan continues to hold rates at a 40-year low, some are demanding that the central bank reverse course. They argue...

FEDERAL RESERVE `Jobless recovery' It's a commonly held view among the nation's economists that the Federal Reserve can't raise interest rates, which are at a 40-year low, until there is...

CONSUMER CONFIDENCE Lifted by jobs data In the more than eight months since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, a lot has occurred to restore Americans' faith in the future. Yet...

LEADING INDICATORS Mood turns cool For reasons that probably relate to the meltdown of dot-coms and the rocky trail traversed by telecoms, Americans remain remarkably reluctant to embrace a belief...

RETAIL SALES Buyers unruffled Experts have been humming a simple, repetitive tune for the better part of two years: If the consumer doesn't bend, the economy won't break. During that...

INFLATION Worries remain Inflation has become a one-trick pony, working its influence primarily through a single item, gasoline. That often prompts economists to ignore its effect, on the assumption that...

EMPLOYMENT Feeble growth While the experts crow about an economic revival, workers keep waiting for a rebound in the still-soft job market. It's true that payrolls have expanded in recent...

GDP A quicker pace To hear some economists tell it, the recovery is advancing so quickly that the economy will hit full stride within weeks, and no later than midyear....

OUSING STARTS Hammering slows As businesses continue to shrink from making major purchases, consumers are called on to do the economy's heavy lifting. In one key area, they show few...

INFLATION Rate hike rumbles As Mideast violence continues, commodity prices are on the march, with not only oil but gold heading higher. At some stations, gasoline has topped $1.75 a...