Charlie Ripley

The Federal Reserve bumped its median forecast for core inflation, which has left analysts divided as some believe that the central bank is overplaying the inflation story, while others say the impact of inflation cannot be overstated. What Happened: Despite acknowledging that inflation data was...

February's jobs report released Friday showed the U.S. economy added fewer jobs than expected, while the unemployment rate unexpectedly ticked higher. Experts are weighing in on the report. What To Know: The U.S. economy added 151,000 jobs in February, below market expectations of 160,000, as...

January's inflation data came in hotter-than-expected Wednesday morning, with the Consumer Price Index rising to 3% year-over-year. Experts are reacting to the surprise print and what it could mean for the future path of interest rates.  What To Know: Monthly inflation climbed at its highest...

January's nonfarm payrolls came in well-below expectations, rising by 143,000 and missing economist expectations of 170,000, as tracked by TradingEconomics. Experts are weighing in on the slowdown in job growth and what it means for the future of interest rates.  Expert Ideas: Economists are...

December's Producer Price Index data came in cooler-than-expected Tuesday, rising 3.3% year-over-year, below forecasts of a 3.4% increase. Markets are reacting positively, but experts have mixed views on the latest inflation data.  Expert Ideas: Charlie Ripley, senior investment strategist for...

The Federal Reserve announced a widely anticipated 25-basis-point interest rate cut at its December meeting Wednesday, lowering the federal funds rate to a range of 4.25% to 4.5%. The cut is the third consecutive reduction in borrowing costs following a 50-basis-point cut in September and a 25-...

Friday’s lower unemployment figure is a strong indication that the Federal Reserve may cut rates by 0.25% instead of 0.50% when it meets in less than two weeks, economists say. “This is the moment we've all been waiting for and, based on the data, it looks like the Fed won't need to...

A negative sentiment might linger on Wall Street on Wednesday, as evidenced by stock futures, after Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.‘s (NASDAQ:AMD) underwhelming quarterly report, exerting pressure on the tech sector and the broader market. However, the afternoon’s Federal Reserve...

U.S. stock futures are slightly higher on Thursday following the lackluster performance seen in recent sessions. With the Federal Reserve pouring cold water on the market’s hope for expeditious rate cuts, the mood will likely revert to data-dependency. Against the backdrop, investors could...

The August jobs report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday showed job creation outperformed expectations, but the unemployment rate edged up and wage growth moderated more than anticipated. Here's what you need to know about the report, what economists think about the data and...

The Consumer Price Index rose from 3% in June to 3.2% in July, narrowly missing the anticipated 3.3%. Core inflation (excluding energy and food) was down marginally from 4.8% in June to 4.7% in July, cooler than the projected 4.8%. Traders pushed the broad market SPDR S&P 500 (NYSE:SPY) more...

On Friday morning, the Labor Department reported solid U.S. jobs market numbers from March. The U.S. added 236,000 jobs in March, slightly missing average economist estimates of 240,000 jobs. The unemployment rate fell 0.1% to 3.5%, below economist estimates of 3.6%. Wages were up 4.2% year-over-...

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE: SPY) traded lower Friday after the Labor Department reported blowout U.S. jobs market numbers from January. The U.S. added 517,000 jobs in January, beating average economist estimates of 187,000 jobs. The unemployment rate dropped to 3.4%, below economist...

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE: SPY) traded higher Friday after the Labor Department reported strong U.S. jobs market numbers from October. The U.S. added 261,000 jobs in October, beating average economist estimates of 205,000 jobs. The unemployment rate increased 0.2% to 3.7%, above...

The Federal Reserve raised its target fed funds rate by 0.75% on Wednesday to a new range of between 3% and 3.25%, its third 0.75% rate hike in four months. The Fed said it will continue with its previously announced plan to let Treasury securities and agency debt and agency mortgage-backed...