US BUSINESSES HAVE MORE PHYSICAL LOCATIONS NOW THAN PRE-PANDEMIC

US businesses now have more physical locations than before covid-19, another sign of the blistering pace of the economic recovery. Companies shut down offices, stores, and warehouses across the country in the first year of the pandemic.

ONLINE GROCERY SALES DOWN 6% IN MARCH

Delivery is fueling online grocery sales. Total U.S. online grocery sales were down 6% in March to $8.7 billion versus March 2021’s record high of $9.3 billion, according to the Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopping Survey. Total sales for the first quarter of 2022 finished just 2.5% lower compared to a year ago.

MASTERCARD SPENDING PULSE: MARCH SALES INCREASE 8.4%; IN-STORE SALES REBOUND

Consumer spending on services is making a comeback. So are in-store sales. U.S. total retail sales (excluding auto) increased 8.4% year-over-year in 2022 and 18.0% compared to pre-pandemic spending (2019), not adjusted for inflation.

FED SIGNALS MORE AGGRESSIVE STEPS TO FIGHT INFLATION

Federal Reserve officials are signaling that they will take an aggressive approach to fighting high inflation in the coming months — actions that will make borrowing sharply more expensive for consumers and businesses and heighten risks to the economy.

NEARLY THREE-QUARTERS OF US COUNTIES HAVE MORE BUSINESSES THAN BEFORE PANDEMIC: ANALYSIS

Close to three-quarters of U.S. counties have seen a net gain of businesses since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, according to an analysis of federal data released Tuesday. By the end of September, 74 percent of U.S. countries had more physical business establishments than they did before the start of the COVID-19.

U.S. MORTGAGE RATES SOAR, REACHING HIGHEST SINCE LATE 2018

The average for a 30-year loan was 4.67%, up from 4.42% last week, Freddie Mac said in a statement Thursday. Rates are up more than a percentage point and a half since the start of the year, the largest three-month increase since 1987.