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By Joseph Lord, Jackson Richman and Arjun Singh
WASHINGTON—The U.S. Senate on March 14 approved a House-passed bill to extend government funding by six months, ...
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By Emel Akan and Travis Gillmore
President Donald Trump on March 13 expressed optimism about the United States acquiring Greenland, highlighting the effort as vital ...
- Judge Rules Against Trump in Labor Case With Implications for DOGE
By Kimberly Hayek
A federal judge ruled on March 12 against President Donald Trump in a case that could have major implications regarding his attempts ...
- EPA to Roll Back Raft of Climate Regulations, Including EV Rule
By Austin Alonzo
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin on March 12 made what he called the “largest deregulatory announcement in U.S. history.”
In a ...
- USAID Staff Ordered to Destroy Records, Court Filing Says
By Aldgra Fredly
Some U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) employees have received instructions to empty classified safes and destroy agency records, according to a ...
- Ontario to Suspend Electricity Export Tariff After Premier, US Commerce Secretary Speak
By Jennifer Cowen
Ontario says it will suspend its 25 percent surcharge on electricity exports to Michigan, New York, and Minnesota after Premier Doug Ford ...
- Trump to Declare Emergency After Ontario Imposes Tariffs on Electricity Sold to US
By Travis Gillmore
President Donald Trump announced on March 11 that he is planning to declare a national emergency after Canada’s Ontario province placed a ...
- More Than 200,000 Government Credit Cards Deactivated: DOGE
By Jack Phillips
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) said more than 200,000 government credit cards linked to a handful of federal agencies were canceled ...
- Zelenskyy Apologized to Trump After Oval Office Clash, Witkoff Says
By Tom Ozimek
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy apologized to President Donald Trump for a heated Oval Office meeting this past week in a letter that ...
- Secret Service Shoots Armed Man Near White House
By Jacob Burg
The U.S. Secret Service shot an adult male near the White House following an “armed confrontation” with law enforcement shortly after midnight ...
- DOGE Says It Found $312 Million in Loans That Were Given to Children During Pandemic
By Jack Phillips
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) said over the weekend that it found that the Small Business Administration (SBA) granted thousands of ...
- Commerce Secretary Says Trump Will Not Ease Up on Fentanyl-Related Tariffs
By Jacob Burg
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on March 9 that President Donald Trump is likely to maintain his tariff pressure on Mexico, Canada, ...
![Strong labor data and positive expectations about the incoming Trump administration pushed the U.S. dollar to a two-year high on Thursday. The U.S. dollar iIndex hit a high of 109.53 on Jan. 2, the first trading day of the year, and the highest since November 2022. The jump came as data released on Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor showed that initial jobless claims hit an eight-month low, suggesting a robust labor market, which is a positive sign for the overall economy. The dollar index was trading slightly lower on Friday at 108.96 as of 08:30 a.m. EST. The dollar index increase is also supported by investor confidence in the upcoming Trump administration, which assumes power this month. According to a recent survey by consulting company Teneo, “global CEOs and investors are optimistic about the economic impact of a second Trump administration, outweighing concerns about tariffs, geopolitical tensions, and trade barriers.” Story continues below advertisement In fact, “50 percent of global CEOs are accelerating activities in areas such as domestic and international investment and hiring based on the outcome of the 2024 U.S. election,” it said. While the dollar strengthened, the euro and sterling declined on Thursday. The euro fell to its lowest level in more than two years while the sterling declined to its lowest in eight months. A Dec. 17 report from JP Morgan predicts the U.S. dollar to reach even new highs over the coming months. Related Stories How Major US Stock Indexes Fared Jan. 2 1/2/2025 How Major US Stock Indexes Fared Jan. 2 Americans Have Hopes Trump Will Deliver on Immigration, Economy, Safety: Gallup 1/2/2025 Americans Have Hopes Trump Will Deliver on Immigration, Economy, Safety: Gallup “November’s election outcome has given way to lower global growth expectations, wider growth gaps between the U.S. and the rest of the world, and higher terminal federal funds rate forecasts for 2025—the perfect trifecta of bullish U.S. dollar cyclical impulse,” said Meera Chandan, co-head of Global FX Strategy at the company. “These are early first-order reactions that may give way to deeper rethinks once the full set of Trump administration policies are known next year [2025], but for now, they constitute a solid economic rationale for carrying a long U.S. dollar stance into the first quarter of 2025.” JP Morgan sees the euro’s outlook as bearish, noting the eurozone is especially vulnerable to trade conflicts. And while sterling was the best-performing currency against the dollar last year, such an outperformance is not expected this year, it said. US Economy Performance in 2025 With President-elect Donald Trump set to take power in less than three weeks, there are mixed views about how things could shape up for the American economy. According to a Dec. 9 post by Morgan Stanley, markets are “bullish on Trump’s second term, hoping for tax cuts and better growth.” “We expect no net stimulus and a decent size hit from tariffs and immigration. This should be bullish for bonds as the Fed continues cutting, but could be a disappointment for frothy stocks,” it said. Regarding tariffs, the most likely outcome is a 20 percent hike on Chinese imports and on vehicles from Mexico and the European Union, Morgan Stanley said. Story continues below advertisement It predicts the U.S. Federal Reserve to continue cutting interest rates to a range of 3 percent 3.5 percent by the end of 2025. S&P Global is forecasting the U.S. economy to grow by 2 percent in 2025 and 2026, following an estimated growth of 2.7 percent last year. The company sees inflation to likely remain above the 2 percent level for “longer than we previously thought.” Goldman Sachs predicts the U.S. economy to “beat expectations” this year. “The U.S. economy is in a good place,” said David Mericle, an economist with the company. “Recession fears have diminished, inflation is trending back toward 2 percent, and the labor market has rebalanced but remains strong.” While Trump’s policy changes are likely to be “significant,” Mericle does not see these actions changing the trajectory of the economy substantially. Goldman foresees the Fed reducing interest rates to a range of 3.25–3.50 percent, with the U.S. GDP predicted to grow by 2.5 percent. There have been three consecutive quarters of economic growth in the first nine months of 2024—1.6 percent in the first quarter, 3 percent in the second, and 3.1 percent in the third.](https://www.usnn.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/US-Dollar-Index-Hits-Highest-Level-in-2-Years-Euro-Falls-jpg.webp "US Dollar Index Hits Highest Level in 2 Years, Euro Falls | USNN World News")
