Trump to make ‘major announcement’ about shutdownWhen government operations resume, federal workers should ordinarily get back pay. White House economists doubled their estimate early this week, determining that after a month, the shutdown would shave a half percentage point off the first quarter. The battle over wall funding coincides with other clouds on the horizon, as a recent Fed survey showed. With a slowing global economy and trade uncertainties, the Fed for now expects 2.3% growth in 2019, down sharply from the growth of about 3% expected for 2018. The fundamentals of the economy remain sound, analysts say, even if much economic data – including home and retail sales or the trade deficit – is not being produced during the shutdown.

Source: The Express Tribune January 19, 2019 13:34 UTC