Oil prices soared and stocks rebounded Monday on bargain-buying after last week’s retreat, with traders riding a wave of renewed optimism.

US homes for sale were in short supply and expensive in July, but Americans continued buying, according to industry data Monday showing sales rose for a second straight month.

A dispute within the Democratic party has stalled US President Joe Biden’s massive spending plans for the United States as Congress postponed a key vote on the measures Monday.

The government of Papua New Guinea and US oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp plan to resume talks on the P’nyang natural gas project, nearly two years after negotiations broke down , Oil Search Ltd, a partner on the project, said Monday. 

General Motors Co said yesterday it would take a hit of US$1 billion (RM4.23 billion) to expand the recall of its Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicles due to the risk of fires from the high-voltage battery pack--a blow for the largest US automaker as it seeks to ramp up EV sales. 

The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City said on Friday its annual economic symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, will take place on August 27 virtually and not in person as planned, the clearest sign yet of the impact of the Covid-19 Delta variant on the Fed’s plans.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has told senior White House advisers she backs reappointing Jerome Powell as US Federal Reserve Chair, whose term expires in February, a Bloomberg News reporter wrote on Twitter.

Stocks recovered ground on Friday despite concerns about economic growth amid rising Covid-19 cases, which continued to take its toll on oil prices.

The White House is withholding support for a Democratic proposal to impose a pollution tax on imports from China and other countries, casting doubt on whether Democrats will be able to deploy what environmentalists consider one of the greatest weapons to tackle global climate change in a massive spending bill this year.

US energy firms this week added oil and natural gas rigs for a third week in a row, as a recovery in oil prices prompted some drillers to return to the wellpad over the past year. 

President Joe Biden’s administration announced steps on Thursday to allow US states to continue expanded unemployment benefits as the country grapples with a surge in the Delta variant of Covid-19, even as data showed jobless claims declining for a fourth straight week.

President Joe Biden should keep Jerome Powell at the helm of the Federal Reserve for another four years to build confidence in an improving economy that still faces significant risks, Senator Steve Daines said in a letter to the president on Thursday.

The US economy likely created 166,000 fewer jobs in the 12 months through March than previously estimated, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Wednesday.

Global stocks and oil markets tanked Thursday but the dollar rallied versus some key rivals after the US Federal Reserve signalled it could rein in vast stimulus measures this year.

Having hunkered down at home and clung on to his job through the 2020 lockdowns, Dutch IT worker Benito Castillion is now on the hunt for a career-enhancing move - and it’s a shift of perspective he shares with millions of white-collar staff worldwide. 

Walmart lifted its full-year forecast Tuesday following another solid performance at its US stores in the second quarter even as e-commerce growth slowed compared with earlier in the pandemic.

New Yorkers interviewed by Reuters on Monday were largely backing the push by the city’s mayor, Bill de Blasio, to require proof of Covid-19 vaccination to enter restaurants, gyms and other businesses. 

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is headed for a scuffle with corporate America over how much information public companies must disclose about their most important asset: employees. 

Just as American steakhouses are recovering from the first wave of Covid shutdowns, the Delta variant threatens to diminish the appetite for a sector seen as a barometer for full US economic recovery. 

Former US oil investment bankers, portfolio managers and executives have formed over 20 listed blank-check companies to take renewable energy companies public, with more listings expected.