Press Releases

by Raymond J. Keating- We all could use some good news during this pandemic and tough economy. Well, check out the new housing data. The latest report from the U.S. Census Bureau points to strength in the housing building sector. Specifically, both housing starts and permits grew robustly in July, expanded for the third straight […]

In an August 18 Op-ed in Issues & Insights, SBE Council president & CEO Karen Kerrigan makes the case for Congress to end the digital divide right now. In her piece, Kerrigan writes: “The pandemic has made it abundantly clear the importance of a quality internet connection. Unfortunately, not everyone has access to high-speed broadband….Small […]

On Wednesday August 5, Axios co-founder Mike Allen and “Axios Today” host Niala Boodhoo hosted the last of a six-event series on how small businesses have pivoted during the coronavirus outbreak. This latest segment featured Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.), and Andrea Stern owner of Satori Yoga studio and Curvy Bride owner Michelle Files. Axios co-founder and CEO Jim VandeHei hosted a View from the […]

by Raymond J. Keating- When a measure of the economy remains deep in negative territory but at a rate not as bad as previous weeks, as is the case with the latest report on initial unemployment claims from the U.S. Department of Labor, we need to be careful not to report it as good news. […]

by Raymond J. Keating- When the Consumer Price Index (CPI) spikes by 0.6 percent in two separate, consecutive months, that normally would be a case for deep concern, or even panic. After all, that would point to inflation running at a 7.2 percent annualized rate. Yikes. But these are not normal times, and this two-month […]

In an August 11 CNBC article that covered key findings from the CNBC/Survey Monkey Q3 Small Business Survey, SBE Council president & CEO Karen Kerrigan provides some insight into why more small business owners may feel more confident about their chances for business survival. According to the survey’s findings: “The pandemic is still raging on […]

In an August 10 CNBC article that reported on the results of the CNBC|SurveyMonkey Q3 Small Business Survey, SBE Council president & CEO Karen Kerrigan commented on the findings, which reports that small business owners “are feeling somewhat more optimistic.” Still, as noted in the article, “the worst is far from over for Main Street, which […]

by Raymond J. Keating- The coronavirus and related shutdowns destroyed jobs at a breathtaking rate in March and April, and the latest jobs data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on August 7 indicate that the effort to regain jobs continued to slog forward for the third straight month in July. However, the […]

by Raymond J. Keating- After two reports came out on August 5 indicating that manufacturing showed some life in July, including the Institute for Supply Management’s report on the manufacturing sector, ISM’s report on the services sector also pointed to recovery continuing in July. The ISM services index, as noted in the report, “registered 58.1 […]

To sum things up, during the first two quarters of 2020, $2 trillion (in 2012 dollars) of real GDP was wiped out. Real GDP in the second quarter stood at basically the same level where GDP was at the start of 2015 – that is, five years ago. That’s the hole out of which we […]