*By Michael Teich* Corporate shareholders may [benefit](https://money.cnn.com/2018/02/16/investing/stock-buybacks-tax-law-bonuses/index.html) from tax cuts, but American workers aren't really profiting, said Mark Hamrick, senior economic analyst at Bankrate. "It's globalization, the ability of employers to [replace labor](https://cheddar.com/videos/selerity-exec-a-i-in-finance-will-shift-from-consumers-to-workers) with technology," Hamrick said Friday in an interview with Cheddar. "Workers are not getting the bulk of these tax cuts. Workers have perhaps some appropriate reason to be a bit disappointed." The Labor Department reported Friday that the unemployment rate in the U.S. dropped to 3.9 percent. But as unemployment falls, inflation is rising, and companies are squeamish about tariffs. "Inflation has been running at an annual rate of about 2 percent, meaning that real wages are making little progress," Hamrick said. Though average hourly earnings rose 2.7 percent for the second straight month, when inflation's factored in, workers are taking home less than a percent more in earnings. Now is the time, Hamrick said, to save for retirement and emergencies. The U.S. economy added 157,000 jobs in July, missing estimates of 193,000 but marking the 94th consecutive month of growth. For more on this story, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/the-reason-youre-not-getting-a-raise).

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Apple posts stronger-than-expected Q2 results
Apple CEO Tim Cook said Thursday that the majority of iPhones sold in the U.S. in the current fiscal quarter will be sourced from India, while iPads and other devices will come from Vietnam as the company works to avoid the impact of President Trump’s tariffs on its business. Apple’s earnings for the first three months of the year topped Wall Street’s expectations thanks to high demand for its iPhones, and the company said tariffs had a limited effect on the fiscal second quarter’s results. Cook added that for the current quarter, assuming things don’t change, Apple expects to see $900 million added to its costs as a result of the tariffs.
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