What we’re reading (6/7)
“The U.S. Economy Is Headed Toward An Uncomfortable Summer” (Wall Street Journal). “The U.S. economy, which weathered false recession alarms in 2023 and 2024, is entering another uncomfortable summer. Job growth held steady in May, with the economy adding 139,000 jobs. The unemployment rate has stayed in a tight range, between 4% and 4.2%, over the past year. But there are cracks beneath the surface. Businesses are warning that constantly shifting trade policies are interfering with their ability to plan for the future, leading to hiring and investment freezes.”
“What Today’s New College Graduates Are Up Against” (Vox). “Numbers from the first quarter of 2025 from the New York Federal Reserve show that the unemployment rate for recent college graduates reached 5.8 percent, up from 4.8 percent in January. Companies have also pulled back on hiring. Last fall, employers expected to increase college-graduate hiring by 7.3 percent, according to a survey led by the National Association of Colleges and Employers. Now they’re projecting just a 0.6 percent increase, with about 11 percent of companies planning to hire fewer new grads than before.”
“Trump Presses Fed Chief Powell To Cut Interest Rate By Full Point Despite Strong Jobs Report” (CNBC). “President Donald Trump urged Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to slash interest rates by a full percentage point despite a better-than-expected jobs report Friday. Trump, who regularly badgers Powell to lower rates, argued for the steep cut even as he maintained that the U.S. economy is ‘doing great.’ ‘Go for a full point, Rocket Fuel!’ Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.”
“The Rich Compensation For Being The C.E.O.” (New York Times). “‘Compensation actually paid’ is one of two major ways of accounting for chief executive pay required under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. It emphasizes the annual changes in the value of an executive’s current and potential stock holdings and reveals the staggering gains of executives, often company founders, who have been granted substantial stakes in their enterprises.”
“Britain Prepares To Go All-In On Nuclear Power — After Years Of Dither” (Politico). “The government is expected to unveil, after months of delay, the winner of a multi-billion pound contract to build next-generation small modular reactors (SMRs), known as ‘mini nukes.’ A long-awaited financial decision on the mega nuclear plant Sizewell C in Suffolk is on its way. Meanwhile, U.K. officials are discussing buying up nuclear sites from private ownership to bring the industry under greater state control.”
