Wall St ends lower, Treasury yields gain as strong data cools rate-cut hopes
US economy on solid ground as weekly jobless claims fall, home sales surge
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, while sales of previously owned homes increased by the most in a year in February, signs the economy remained on solid footing in the first quarter.
That was underscored by other data on Thursday showing business activity stable in March, though inflation picked up. Even a gauge of future economic activity turned positive in February for the time in two years. The United States continues to outshine its global peers, thanks to labor market resilience.
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday left interest rates unchanged, with policymakers upgrading their growth forecasts for this year and indicating they still expected to lower borrowing costs three times by year end. Economists said the upbeat economic reports made it more unlikely that the U.S. central bank would start cutting rates before June.
