WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits was unchanged last week as the labor market continued to gradually ease, which could give the Federal Reserve room to wait before cutting interest rates this year. Despite other data on Thursday showing a sharp widening in the trade deficit in January as businesses boosted imports of computers,...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits was unchanged last week as the labor market continued to gradually ease, which could give the Federal Reserve room to wait before cutting interest rates this year. Despite other data on Thursday showing a sharp widening in the trade deficit in January as businesses boosted imports of computers,...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. job growth likely slowed in February after two straight months of robust gains, but the labor market probably remains too strong for the Federal Reserve to consider cutting interest rates by June as currently anticipated by financial markets. The Labor Department's closely watched employment report on Friday is also expected to show the unemployment rate unchanged...

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) -It's been a long time coming, but the remarkably tight correlation between U.S. and euro zone interest rate expectations is set to unravel. The European Central Bank's downward revisions to its growth and inflation outlook on Thursday speak to an economic reality that means the ECB's rate-cutting cycle will start soon, despite President Christine Lagarde's protestations to...