The United States and China led the way, but the expansion now includes Europe, long mired in a debt crisis, and perennially laggard Japan. Average hourly earnings for United States workers were 2.9 percent higher in January than the previous year, the fastest annual increase in years. The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate is around 4.2 percent, up from less than 4 percent at the end of 2017. The United States economy expanded by a 2.6 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter of 2017. Higher revenue allows companies to offset rising costs, such as workers’ pay, if inflation picks up.

Source: New York Times February 02, 2018 19:50 UTC