Brian Scheid

The number of Americans out of work for 27 weeks or more jumped to the highest level since 2021, as hiring slows and new workers struggle to find jobs.

The S&P 500 hit a dozen record highs since late June, but experts warn the market bubble could burst soon.

With three Fed meetings remaining this year, the case for an unchanged federal funds rate in 2025 is growing stronger.

Companies remain

Similar to bond vigilantes of the 1970s, major market players could boost selling equities to compel President Donald Trump to back off harshest tariffs.

The US dollar index has tumbled nearly 11% since the start of the year. The greenback now sits at its lowest levels since February 2022 and stands to weaken further, according to currency strategists.

Consumer spending fell $29.3 billion in May from a month earlier.

Institutional investors sold a net $50.78 billion worth of stocks throughout May, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data.

The rate of layoffs and discharges has remained near 1% for four years. Hiring is likewise near its lowest levels in years.

Questions about policy may be influencing the market more than specifics about the tariffs themselves, economists and investment analysts said.

Teen workers have seen unemployment jump 350 basis points in two years, while the rate has remained almost flat for Americans aged between 35 and 44.

The price-to-earnings ratio for the S&P 500 plunged after President Trump's tariff announcements.

The benchmark 10-year yield topped 4.5% this week and may have further room to run.

Retail investors sold off nearly net $7.5 billion in stocks in first week of April.

An unprecedented shift in trade policy could force the US central bank to pick between price stability and maximum employment.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says the Fed wants to wait for more clarity regarding the impact of tariffs on inflation and jobs.

The US labor market added 177,000 jobs in April, and unemployment remained at 4.2%. However, economists see the latest government jobs data as the calm before the storm.

One spending measure reached the highest level since December 2023.

There were 901,000 fewer job openings in March than there were a year earlier, according to the latest government data.

Uncertainty persists as White House tariff policy moves alter the market's direction.