U.S. Adds Jobs in June, But Trade War Could Slow Growth
*By Michael Teich*
Wall Street applauded a better-than-expected June jobs report, sending the Dow Industrials Index nearly 100 points higher Friday.
Despite those numbers, though, the U.S. economy is still grappling with growing trade tensions with China and Europe. The Trump administration's tariffs officially went into effect early Friday morning as the U.S. followed through on its threat to impose taxes on $34 billion of Chinese imports. China promptly responded with a similarly seized tariffs on U.S. goods, including pork, soybeans, and electric vehicles.
If trade wars accelerate, "the downside risks outweigh the upside risks," said Mark Hamrick, Senior Economic Analyst, Bankrate.com.
"The trade disputes are having impacts that are real in the economy right now."
The U.S. added 213,000 jobs in June, topping the forecast of 195,000. It was the 93rd consecutive month of job growth. The unemployment rate, however, rose to 4 percent as more people returned to the job market searching for work.
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/u-s-job-growth-beats-expectations)
Federal health advisers voted overwhelmingly against an experimental treatment for Lou Gehrig’s disease at a Wednesday meeting prompted by years of patient efforts seeking access to the unproven therapy.
Lawmakers probing the cause of last month’s deadly Maui wildfire did not get many answers during Thursday's congressional hearing on the role the electrical grid played in the disaster.
President Joe Biden announced Wednesday that federal disaster assistance is available for Louisiana, which is working to slow a mass inflow of salt water creeping up the Mississippi River and threatening drinking water supplies in the southern part of the state.
A new law in California will raise the minimum wage for fast food workers to $20 per hour next year, an acknowledgment from the state's Democratic leaders that most of the often overlooked workforce are the primary earners for their low-income households.
From Sunday, workers at the main United States base in Antarctica will no longer be able to walk into a bar and order a beer, after the U.S. federal agency that oversees the research program decided to stop serving alcohol.
House Republicans launched a formal impeachment hearing Thursday against President Joe Biden, promising to “provide accountability” as they probe the family finances and business dealings of his son Hunter and make their case to the public, colleagues and a skeptical Senate.
The FBI and other government agencies should be required to get court approval before reviewing the communications of U.S. citizens collected through a secretive foreign surveillance program, a sharply divided privacy oversight board recommended on Thursday.
The federal government is just days away from a shutdown that will disrupt many services, squeeze workers and roil politics as Republicans in the House, fueled by hard-right demands, force a confrontation over federal spending.
The Biden administration is finalizing a new rule that would cut federal funding for colleges that leave graduates with low pay and high debt after graduating.
