{"id":2214261,"date":"2024-04-06T06:18:02","date_gmt":"2024-04-06T10:18:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/strong-jobs-strong-growth-not-enough-the-economic-win-still-eluding-biden\/"},"modified":"2024-04-06T06:23:25","modified_gmt":"2024-04-06T10:23:25","slug":"strong-jobs-strong-growth-not-enough-the-economic-win-still-eluding-biden","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/strong-jobs-strong-growth-not-enough-the-economic-win-still-eluding-biden\/","title":{"rendered":"Job growth is strong under Biden, but challenges remain for a robust economic recovery"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fstrong-jobs-strong-growth-not-enough-the-economic-win-still-eluding-biden%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2214261&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>President Joe Biden has seen economic growth and job increases, yet faces challenges\u2063 like high \u2062inflation and interest rates impacting his approval ratings and potential re-election. Despite <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republicans-smell-blood-in-the-water-as-democrats-scramble-before-midterms\/\" title=\"Republicans Smell Blood in the Water as Democrats Scramble Before Midterms\">positive economic indicators<\/a>, \u200dpublic dissatisfaction remains. Rising prices and interest rates are limiting consumer purchases, affecting sentiment. \u200dThe \u200bcurrent economic climate poses hurdles\u200d despite signs of \u200brecovery.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/joe-biden\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Joe Biden<\/a> has benefited in recent months from strong growth in economic output and jobs, but high <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/inflation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>inflation<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/interest-rates\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>interest rates<\/a> still weigh on his approval ratings and threaten his election chances.<\/p>\n<h2>What\u2019s going right for Biden<\/h2>\n<p>Some major economic statistics indicate that the health of the economy is strong. The jobs report for March, for instance, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/finance-and-economy\/2953464\/economy-added-303000-jobs-in-march-more-than-expected\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>showed that<\/a> the labor market is still expanding rapidly and unemployment is very low, by historical standards, at 3.8%. Gross domestic product grew at a robust 3.4% annualized rate in the fourth quarter of 2023, adjusted for inflation, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atlantafed.org\/cqer\/research\/gdpnow\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>is expected<\/a> to come in at a strong 2.5% in the first quarter of this year.<\/p>\n<p>Yet, despite such signs of economic health, the public is unhappy with Biden\u2019s economic stewardship. A recent CNBC <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2024\/03\/26\/biden-pulls-even-with-trump-as-economic-view-improves-slightly-cnbc-survey-shows.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>survey<\/a> found that Biden\u2019s economic approval rating is only 37%, although that is up from 33% in December.<\/p>\n<h2>What\u2019s going wrong for Biden<\/h2>\n<p>The glaring explanation for economic dissatisfaction is the high inflation of the past few years.<\/p>\n<p>Overall prices are up 18% since Biden took office in January 2021. For instance, boneless chicken breasts cost 26% more now than they did then, gas is<a href=\"https:\/\/fred.stlouisfed.org\/series\/GASREGW\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title> nearly<\/a> 48% more expensive, clothing<a href=\"https:\/\/fred.stlouisfed.org\/series\/CPIAPPSL\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title> costs<\/a> 9% more, and ground beef has grown in price by more than 41% since Biden entered office.<\/p>\n<p>The less obvious economic problem is that interest rates are high, putting major consumer purchases, such as houses, cars, and appliances, out of reach for many families.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople don\u2019t feel GDP numbers, they don\u2019t feel jobs numbers, especially when they already have one or can find one, but they do feel inflation numbers \u2014 they see it in the grocery prices, they see it in their interest rates on their mortgages,\u201d Casey Burgat, legislative affairs program director at George Washington University, told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>The average rate on a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/middle-class-millennials-hard-hit-by-housing-market\/\" title=\"Middle Class, Millennials Hard Hit By Housing Market\">30-year fixed-rate mortgage<\/a>, for example, has risen from 2.77% when Biden was inaugurated to 6.82% in the most recent reading provided by Freddie Mac. As a result, the typical payment on a new mortgage rose to $2,721 in March, <a href=\"https:\/\/investors.redfin.com\/news-events\/press-releases\/detail\/1073\/rising-supply-draws-in-some-buyers-even-as-housing#:~:text=SEATTLE%2D%2D(BUSINESS%20WIRE)%2D%2D,technology%2Dpowered%20real%20estate%20brokerage.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>according to<\/a> the real estate company Redfin, double what it was as recently as mid-2020.<\/p>\n<p>Similarly, rising interest rates mean that buying a car is a much pricier proposition. The average cost of owning and operating a new vehicle rose to $12,182 for 2023, <a href=\"https:\/\/newsroom.aaa.com\/2023\/08\/annual-new-car-ownership-costs-boil-over-12k\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>according to<\/a> AAA, up 27% from <a href=\"https:\/\/newsroom.aaa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Your-Driving-Costs-2020-Fact-Sheet-FINAL-12-9-20-2.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>2020<\/a>, thanks largely to higher rates on auto loans.<\/p>\n<p>The higher costs of financing consumer goods appear to be a top reason that consumers are unhappy. Sentiment, in fact, is well below what would be expected given the mix of GDP growth, unemployment, and inflation. After all, while inflation has been high, median-inflation-adjusted earnings were above the pre-pandemic level at the end of 2023, <a href=\"https:\/\/fred.stlouisfed.org\/series\/LES1252881600Q\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>according to<\/a> Bureau of Labor Statistics data.<\/p>\n<p>The inflation data, though, does not take into account higher interest rates. A recently circulated <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nber.org\/papers\/w32163\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>working paper<\/a> authored by Harvard economist and former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers concluded that the higher borrowing costs explain much of the low readings in consumer sentiment that cannot be explained by the unemployment and inflation numbers.<\/p>\n<p>John McLaughlin, a longtime pollster for the Trump campaign and for the Job Creators Network Foundation, said he thinks people will end up voting against Biden because of their anger with the higher inflation and higher interest rates.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s the deciding issue,\u201d he told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h2>What Biden needs<\/h2>\n<p>For Biden, then, a key consideration for the rest of the year is not just whether the economy continues to see strong output and job growth coupled with falling inflation. It is also whether interest rates will moderate.\u00a0That, in turn, will largely depend on what the Federal Reserve does.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Fed officials have indicated that they expect to reduce their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/parts-of-the-yield-curve-just-inverted\/\" title=\"Parts of the Yield Curve Just Inverted\">short-term interest rate target<\/a> this year as inflation comes down. Yet recent hot inflation readings have led investors to believe that the rate cuts will be delayed. Following Friday\u2019s surprisingly strong jobs report, bond market prices indicated that no rate cuts were expected until June at the earliest, according to the CME Group\u2019s FedWatch tool.<\/p>\n<p>In other words, if Biden wants to see economic sentiment rise and boost his approval ratings, he should hope the inflation rate comes down further, coupled with signs that the labor market is not overheating, in the coming months. That, in turn, would lead the Fed to move faster toward lowering interest rates.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In recent months, President Joe Biden has seen positive economic growth and job numbers. However, challenges like inflation and interest rates impact his approval ratings and potential re-election. Despite these hurdles, key economic indicators signal a resilient economy. The latest jobs report reinforces his administration&#8217;s efforts toward recovery<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3032,"featured_media":2214262,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/biden-frown-1024x591.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2214261","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/biden-frown-1024x591.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2214261","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3032"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2214261"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2214261\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2214262"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2214261"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2214261"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2214261"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}