Photo of newborn babies in the nursery at a hospital in New York

Fewer Babies as US Birth Rate Fails to Rise With Economy

America's baby bust isn't over. The nation's birth rates last year reached record lows for women in their teens and 20s, a government report shows, leading to the fewest babies in 32 years. The provisional report, released Wednesday and based on more than 9...
Photo of a man walking into Uber HQ in San Francisco

IPOs Bring Tax Jackpot for California; Can Lawmakers Resist?

SACRAMENTO — Uber and Airbnb are among at least six California-based companies valued at more than $1 billion expected to go public this year, creating a new class of millionaires and billionaires and a welcome quandary for the state's budget writers. "My s...
Photo of consumer shopping for bananas

US Consumer Spending Posts Big Gains

WASHINGTON — U.S. consumer spending surged 0.9% in March, the biggest gain in nearly a decade, as inflation pressures remain non-existent. Incomes grew 0.1% in March while inflation rose just 0.2% and has risen only 1.5% over the past 12 months, far below t...
Photo of trucks at El Paso-Mexico border

Dire Consequences for US Economy if Trump Closes Border

President Donald Trump's threat to shut down the southern border raised fears Monday of dire economic consequences in the U.S. and upheaval of daily life in a stretch of the country that relies on the international flow of not just goods and services but also ...