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U.S. consumer spending surged in March. Here’s what drove that

Summary:
  • increased 1.7% in March
  • Average tax refund reached $3,571 boosting spending
  • rose to $3.94 per gallon amid conflict

March retail sales across the U.S. surged as consumers faced rising gas prices due to the U.S.-Israel war against Iran, and as they spent their and bought candy for Easter.

All told, retail sales rose 1.7% in March, compared to the 0.7% gain in February, according to the numbers released Tuesday, April 21 by the U.S. Commerce Department’s Census Bureau.

It was the fastest pace since January 2023.

Gas prices shot up amid the war in Iran because the conflict has kept ships from being able to move through the , a narrow strip of water that passes by Iran, and through which 20% of the world’s oil and natural gas passes.

Story continues below photo gallery

Iran and the U.S. have gone tit-for-tat in enforcing naval blockades of the strait.

The cost of a gallon of gas was $3.94 on Tuesday, compared to $2.96 a year ago, according to figures from travel club .

“An eye-popping headline for retail spending from the consumer in March is quickly brought down to reality with the Iran war boosting the price and dollars spent on gasoline at the pump,” said Chris Rupkey, chief economist at the financial research firm Fwdbonds.

WTI crude oil — the primary oil used in the United States — was trading nearly $89 a barrel, still down from $103 weeks ago but higher than the $67 at the start of the war.

The international standard — Brent crude oil — was trading at over $95 on Tuesday, down from $102 weeks ago but higher than the $70 seen at the start of the conflict.

“Stripping out the big surge in spending on gas due to the Middle East conflict, it’s a solid but more modest 0.6% increase,” Heather Long, chief economist for Navy Federal Credit Union, said in a note.

Larger tax refunds

As for tax refunds, those were larger this year, hence the higher level of retail sales, Neil Saunders, a retail analyst and managing director of , a market intelligence and analytics company, said in a Tuesday morning note.

The latest data from the IRS shows that the average tax refund was $3,571 for individual filers, creating a “shot in the arm” for consumer spending, Saunders said.

But even with tax refunds “a lot of consumers are opting for smaller indulgences” rather than big-ticket purchases, he continued.

“The impact of tariffs is visible in the high spending on electronics and appliances due to higher prices,” said Long, the Navy Federal Credit Union economist.

Consumer prices rose in North Jersey by 4.5% in March, inflation data shows, also driven by gas price increases and rising costs of groceries.

Mother’s Day spending projected to hit $38 billion

The next big spending occasion will be Mother’s Day on May 10. Americans are projected to spend a record high $38 billion, beating a previous record in 2023 of $35.7 billion, according to numbers released Tuesday by the trade group the .

“It is the kind of holiday people don’t sacrifice for,” Saunders, the retail analyst, said in an email. “However, we will likely see a continued focus on gifting experiences rather than just products.”

The inflation numbers come as wages failed to keep up, and economic experts have talked about a so-called “K-shaped economy,” with one trend line pointing up for wealthier consumers and another heading down for middle- and lower-income earners.

Meanwhile the labor market has cooled, especially in New Jersey, where only 5,100 jobs were added to the workforce in 2025 and unemployment stands at 5.2%, one of the highest of any state in the nation.

Daniel Munoz covers business, consumer affairs, labor and the economy for NorthJersey.com and The Record.

Email: [email protected]; Twitter:@danielmunoz100, Facebook and Instagram

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: surged in March. Here’s what drove that

Reporting by Daniel Munoz, NorthJersey.com / NorthJersey.com

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US judge blocks Trump administration actions stymieing wind, solar projects

Summary:

BOSTON, April 21 (Reuters) – A federal judge on Tuesday blocked President ‘s administration from enforcing a series of permitting policies that wind and solar energy industry groups say have stymied the development of new energy generation projects.

Chief U.S. District Judge Denise Casper in Boston issued a preliminary injunction sought by nine advocacy groups and industry trade associations that argued the administration had imposed unlawful roadblocks that have halted the development of wind and solar energy projects nationwide.

The judge said the plaintiffs were likely to succeed in showing the U.S. Department of Interior and other agencies adopted a series of unlawful policies that had led to developers canceling or delaying numerous wind and solar projects nationwide.

Her ruling applies to members of the plaintiff organizations, which include RENEW Northeast and Alliance for Clean Energy New York.

“This is an undeniable victory for members of our coalition and the broader clean energy industry, as well as American households and businesses,” the groups said in a joint statement.

The Interior Department in a statement said that while it does not comment on litigation, “America sets the global standard for energy production.”

The ruling was the latest in a series of judicial rebukes to the ‘s efforts to block federal approvals for wind energy projects or stop work on multibillion-dollar farms under construction on the East Coast.

The Republican president has sought to boost government support for fossil fuels and maximize their output in the United States, the world’s top oil and gas producer, after campaigning for the presidency on the refrain of “drill, baby, drill.”

Trump on Monday invoked the Defense ​Production Act as he signed ‌a series of energy-related presidential memorandums aimed at further boosting production of oil, coal and natural gas, citing the need for “defense readiness.”

Groups supporting wind and solar power sued in December, seeking to block government actions they said placed wind and solar technologies into what one of their lawyers described as a “regulatory second-class status.”

Those actions included a policy the Interior Department adopted in a July memorandum that requires nearly every step in the wind and solar permitting process to receive approval from three senior political appointees, including Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.

The memorandum cited directives and orders Trump had signed aimed at blocking offshore wind development and directing the Interior Department to eliminate “preferences” for “expensive and unreliable energy sources like wind and solar.”

The plaintiffs argued the policy created a bottleneck that ground permitting to a halt and was adopted without any explanation for why it was needed, in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act.

Casper, who was appointed by Democratic President Barack Obama, agreed, saying none of the directives the department cited explained or justified the three-tiered review process.

She also blocked policies the plaintiffs said disfavor energy projects that are “capacity dense,” as wind and solar ones would be deemed, and the Interior Department’s adoption of an interpretation of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act that imposes stricter standards for offshore wind projects.

(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi, David Gaffen, Bill Berkrot and Deepa Babington)

 

Fed chief nominee Warsh commits to central bank’s independence, with limits

Summary:

WASHINGTON, April 20 (Reuters) – Kevin Warsh, President ‘s nominee to lead the Federal Reserve, will tell lawmakers at his Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday that he is “committed to ensuring that the conduct of monetary policy remains strictly independent,” according to prepared remarks released on Monday.

“I am equally committed to working with the Administration and Congress on non-monetary matters that are part of the Fed’s remit,” the 56-year-old financier and former Fed governor will tell members of the Senate Banking Committee.

is “at its peak in the operational conduct of monetary policy,” Warsh said in his prepared remarks. “That degree of independence does not extend to the full range of its congressionally mandated functions,” he said, adding that policymakers are not entitled to the same “special deference” in their stewardship of public monies, bank regulation and supervision, “or in areas affecting international finance, among other matters.”

Warsh, who has been nominated to replace Fed Chair as head of the central bank, also pledged to push through change at the monetary policy agency, saying the tendency of large and complex institutions to stick with the status quo is “harmful” when the world is changing fast.

“In a time that will rank among the most consequential in our nation’s history, I believe a reform-oriented Federal Reserve can make a real difference to the American people,” he said in the prepared remarks.

Warsh, who was a Fed governor from 2006 to 2011, used much of his speech to reprise critiques he has made of the central bank in the decade and a half since resigning. The Fed, he said, must “stay in its lane” rather than stray into fiscal and social policies, phrasing that in the past he has used to take the central bank to task for doing research into the economic implications of climate change and targeting “inclusive” full employment. The Fed in the last few years has largely abandoned any focus on climate change.

Warsh also said he views Fed independence as being under siege because the central bank has failed to ensure its congressionally assigned mandate of price stability.

“Low is the Fed’s plot armor, its vital protection against slings and arrows,” Warsh said. “So, when inflation surges – as it has done in recent years – grievous harm is done to our citizens … (who) may also lose faith in our system of economic governance, raising doubts whether monetary policy independence is all it’s cracked up to be.”

“Inflation is a choice, and the Fed must take responsibility for it,” said Warsh, who has repeatedly lambasted U.S. central bank policymakers for blaming the post-pandemic burst of inflation on supply shocks.

Warsh’s confirmation hearing before the Senate panel is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT) on Tuesday.

(Reporting by Ann Saphir, Doina Chiacu and Ryan Patrick Jones; Editing by Michelle Nichols, Chizu Nomiyama and Paul Simao)

 

Oil prices climb 3% after Trump says he does not want to extend Iran ceasefire

Summary:

Oil prices climbed about 3% on Tuesday after Iran said it had yet to decide whether to attend peace talks with the United States, with one day left before the ceasefire runs out in the .

U.S. President said he hoped to reach a deal to end the war, but he did not want to extend the ceasefire, and said the was “raring to go” if negotiations were not successful.

Brent futures rose $3, or 3.1%, to settle at $98.48 a barrel, while U.S. crude rose $2.52, or 2.8%, to settle at $92.13.

Crude futures pared earlier gains of around 5% after reports U.S. Vice President JD Vance, due to lead the U.S. delegation, had yet to board a flight for Islamabad at midday on Tuesday.

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which normally handles about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies, remained broadly halted on Tuesday with only three ships passing the waterway in the past 24 hours, shipping data showed.

“You’ve already at this point lost a billion barrels, even if this resolves tomorrow. If it’s another month, it’s 1.5 billion barrels,” Saad Rahim, chief economist at commodity trader Trafigura, said at the FT Global Commodities Summit.

Elsewhere in the Middle East, the Israeli military said Hezbollah fired rockets at Israeli troops in southern Lebanon, accusing the Iran-backed group of violating a ceasefire ahead of U.S.-mediated talks between the Israeli and Lebanese governments this week. There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah.

The will provide guidance to airlines on how to handle issues such as airport slots, passenger rights and public service obligations in the event of jet fuel shortages because of the Iran war, the bloc’s transport chief said.

German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche said supplies of jet fuel are not in danger as refineries adapt to increased demand, but added the government is monitoring the situation.

RUSSIAN SUPPLIES

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the Druzhba oil pipeline pumping Russian oil to Europe is ready to resume operations, signaling that Ukraine now expects a 90 billion euro ($106 billion) aid package to be unblocked. Three industry sources, however, said Russia is set to stop oil exports from Kazakhstan to Germany via the Druzhba pipeline starting from May 1.

Russia’s energy ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he was not aware of a move to stop the oil exports.

In Germany, the biggest economy in Europe, investor morale declined to its lowest level in more than three years in April as businesses started to feel the economic consequences of the Iran war far beyond price increases, the ZEW economic research institute said.

In the United States, increased more than expected in March as the war in Iran boosted gasoline prices and led to a record surge in receipts at service stations, while underpinned spending elsewhere.

US OIL STORAGE REPORTS AWAITED

Those crude price increases came as the market waited for direction from weekly storage reports from the American Petroleum Institute trade group later on Tuesday and the U.S. Energy Information Administration on Wednesday.

Analysts projected that energy firms pulled 1.2 million barrels of crude from storage during the week ended April 17.

If correct, that would be the first time energy firms pulled crude out of storage for two weeks in a row since February, and compares with an increase of 0.2 million barrels in the same week last year and a decline of 3.7 million barrels over the past five years (2021 to 2025).

($1 = 0.8516 euros)

(Reporting by Scott DiSavino in New York, Seher Dareen in London, Anmol Choubey in Bengaluru and Emily Chow in SingaporeEditing by Nick Zieminski and Lisa Shumaker)

RTX subsidiary wins $213.39M Navy contract modification

The Navy has awarded , a subsidiary of -based aerospace and defense contractor , a $213.39 million contract modification to continue work on the Navy’s Zumwalt-class destroyers.

According to RTX, the Zumwalt-class destroyer is a highly automated, all-electric warship in which a single encrypted network controls all shipboard computing applications, from lighting and machinery to radars and weapon systems. The design reduces crew size and supports advanced sensors and long-range strike capabilities.

The ‘s Monday notice said that Raytheon’s work will include combat system installation, integration, development, testing, correction, maintenance and modernization of Zumwalt-class mission systems and equipment.

Work will be performed in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, California and Indiana, and is expected to be completed by April 2027. Naval Sea Systems Command, based in Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

The initial contract, valued at $482.7 million, was awarded in 2022 and included options that could bring the total value to $1.68 billion.

RTX employs more than 185,000 people worldwide and reported $88.6 billion in sales in 2025, up 10% from 2024. The company is the second-highest-ranked Virginia-based company on the 2025 Fortune 500.

Chavez-DeRemer steps down as US labor secretary amid misconduct probe

Summary:

WASHINGTON, April 20 (Reuters) – Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer resigned on Monday amid allegations of misconduct at the department, stepping down as the Labor Department’s inspector general neared the end of an investigation into claims involving her and her top aides.

Her deputy, Keith Sonderling, will serve as acting secretary, the said.

“While my time serving in the Administration comes to a conclusion, it doesn’t mean I will stop fighting for American workers. I am looking forward to what the future has in store as I depart for the private sector,” Chavez-DeRemer said in a statement.

The Labor Department’s inspector general is nearing the end of a months-long investigation into a whistleblower’s allegations of professional misconduct by Chavez-DeRemer, including claims that she had an affair with a member of her security team and used department resources for personal trips. Chavez-DeRemer was expected to be interviewed in the matter in the coming days.

Her departure makes her the third to leave U.S. President ‘s cabinet in recent weeks. Kristi Noem was fired as secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in March and Pam Bondi left as attorney general less than a month later.

Trump had been weighing a broader as he grows increasingly frustrated with the political fallout from the war with , five people familiar with internal White House discussions told Reuters earlier this month.

Chavez-DeRemer took the helm of the agency in March 2025 after serving in the U.S. House of Representatives for two years. Her nomination received bipartisan support in the U.S. Senate.

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations were among the unions that supported Chavez-DeRemer’s nomination.

At the time, the praised her “history of supporting the freedom of workers to organize, join unions and other fundamental values of the labor movement.”

The Teamsters did not immediately respond when reached about Chavez-DeRemer’s departure. The AFL-CIO said a labor secretary who “understands working people and will work to make our lives better” is needed.

Chavez-DeRemer’s tenure was fraught with allegations of misconduct at the department that resulted in the resignations of her chief of staff and deputy chief of staff.

The department’s inspector general has also investigated Chavez-DeRemer and her aides over claims that they sent personal text messages and inappropriate requests to young staff members, according to the New York Times.

(Reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington; Additional reporting by Nandita Bose, Gram Slattery and Andrea Shalal, Editing by Caitlin Webber and Stephen Coates)

 

Apple names insider John Ternus as CEO, Cook to become executive chairman

April 20 (Reuters) – Apple on Monday named insider John Ternus as its next CEO, tasking the long-time hardware chief to steer the company after Tim Cook as the iPhone maker gears up for an industry change spurred by artificial intelligence.

Cook, who has led Apple since 2011, will become the company’s executive chairman, Apple said in a statement.

Wall Street closes slightly down on renewed tensions between US, Iran

Summary:
  • stocks close slightly lower amid U.S.- tensions
  • Crude jump over 6% lifting energy sector
  • ends nine-session winning streak with 2.56% drop

NEW YORK, April 20 (Reuters) – U.S. stocks closed slightly lower on Monday, with each of the three major indexes coming off a third straight week of gains, as renewed U.S.-Iran tensions put the durability of a two-week ceasefire in question.

Iran is considering attending peace talks with the U.S. in Pakistan, a senior Iranian official told Reuters, following moves by Islamabad to end a U.S. blockade of Iran’s ports.

However, a separate source said Vice President JD Vance was still in the U.S., denying reports he was on his way to Pakistan for talks.

Iran opened the on Friday, fueling a broad market surge, with the S&P 500 and the posting record highs for a third straight session for their biggest weekly gains in 11 months. However, Tehran closed the crucial shipping waterway again over the weekend.

U.S. crude jumped 6.87% to settle at $89.61 a barrel and Brent rose to settle at $95.48 per barrel, up 5.64% on the day, lifting the S&P 500 energy index 0.21%.

“The news over the weekend with the re-closure of the strait or the boarding of the Iran vessel, that gets us a little away from it’s fully reopened, but the timing doesn’t look like it’s still that far off as it was with at least talks over the week,” said Tom Hainlin, national investment strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management in Minneapolis.

“But you’re in the middle of season too, so then the question is, has there been any bleed over into the real economy, and so far you’ve heard from the banks that consumer credit looks okay and their spending looks okay.”

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 4.87 points, or 0.01%, to 49,442.56, the S&P 500 lost 16.92 points, or 0.24%, to 7,109.14 and the Nasdaq Composite declined 64.09 points, or 0.26%, to 24,404.39.

Communication services was the worst-performing sector, as Meta was down 2.56% to snap a nine-session winning streak, its longest since October.

fell 2.55% to also weigh on the sector, and has fallen about 12% since announcing its quarterly results and the departure of co-founder Reed Hastings last week.

The CBOE Volatility Index, known as ‘s “fear gauge”, gained after falling for the past eight sessions and was last up 1.37 points at 18.85, after reaching a one-week high of 19.99.

Investors will look to assess the impact of the on corporate earnings and on the broader economy, with companies including Lockheed Martin and IBM scheduled to report later this week.

Tesla will kick off results from the so-called “Magnificent Seven” group of megacap stocks on Wednesday.

Of the 48 S&P 500 companies that have reported earnings through Friday morning, 87.5% have topped analyst expectations, according to LSEG data. The current first-quarter earnings growth rate stands at 14.4%.

Among other movers, QXO shares lost 3.12% after the construction supplies distributor struck a $17 billion deal to acquire building products distributor and installer TopBuild, whose shares surged 19.38%.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.08-to-1 ratio on the NYSE, but declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.01-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 44 new 52-week highs and no new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 173 new highs and 42 new lows.

Volume on U.S. exchanges was 16.42 billion shares, compared with the 18.54 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.

(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; additional reporting by Purvi Agarwal and Avinash P in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva, Tasim Zahid and Devika Syamnath and David Gregorio)

 

United Felts to acquire German manufacturer BKP

Martinsville-based , which makes materials used to repair underground pipes, announced last week it has acquired German manufacturer BKP Berolina Polyester, which develops advanced composite and ultraviolet-cured-in-place pipe-liner technology.

The financial terms were not disclosed, and United Felts did not immediately return a request for comment. United Felts said the will expand its global platform and enhance its offerings in cured-in-place pipes and advanced composite liner systems.

Founded in 1959 and headquartered in Velten, Germany, BKP makes the Berolina-Liner System, which allows sewer pipes to be repaired from the inside without digging.

“For nearly 30 years, BKP has been focused on advancing UV CIPP liner technology and supporting customers with a reliable, high-quality solution,” BKP CEO Thomas Christiansen said in a statement. “Joining United Felts creates new opportunities for innovation, broader market reach and continued investment in the products and services our customers rely on.”

A news release did not specifically state what roles BKP’s leadership would play in the combined company or how many employees or locations would be obtained through the acquisition.

“This acquisition significantly expands our ability to serve the market with one of the most comprehensive liner portfolios in the industry,” United Felts President Matt Timberlake said in his statement. “By bringing together United Felts’ leadership and manufacturing expertise with BKP’s advanced composite and UV CIPP expertise, we are better positioned to support customers globally with proven solutions across a broader range of rehabilitation applications.”

A division of Houston-based Vortex, United Felts was formed in 2024 through the consolidation of several liner manufacturing businesses, including operations in established in 1997. The company has more than 100,000 liners in service and has manufactured 200 million feet of tube. Vortex has 17 locations worldwide and more than 800 employees.

BWXT to acquire heavy manufacturer for nuclear production

Lynchburg-based components and fuel manufacturer has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Pennsylvania-based manufacturer Precision Components Group, announced Monday.

PCG is a privately held manufacturer of complex, heavy-walled and heat-transfer components, and the will grow BWXT’s commercial nuclear production capacity, according to a news release. PCG generated approximately $125 million in 2025 revenue.

Financial terms of the transaction, expected to close in the second half of 2026, were not disclosed.

“As nuclear demand accelerates across North America, BWXT is committed to providing the capacity and speed that the commercial nuclear industry requires,” BWXT President and CEO Rex D. Geveden said in a statement. “This acquisition creates an immediate commercial footprint for BWXT that complements our existing service offerings to customers.”

The acquisition will add more than 500,000 square feet of heavy manufacturing capacity and more than 400 employees to BWXT. It includes PCG subsidiaries Precision Custom Components and DC Fabricators.

Based in Pennsylvania, PCC manufactures custom-fabricated heavy pressure vessels, reactors, casks and other heavy-walled components for nuclear, commercial and government uses. Its facility has approximately 400,000 square feet of manufacturing space.

DCF, based in New Jersey, designs and manufactures steam condensers, heat exchangers and large-envelope weldments for commercial and government heat-transfer and industrial uses. Located on a 25-acre site with barge-loading capability, the DCF facility has about 125,000 square feet of fabrication and machining space.

PCG will join BWXT’s commercial operations segment and continue operating at its current facilities.

PCG, PCC and DCF “have built a strong legacy of precision manufacturing, technical excellence and unwavering commitment to our customers,” PCG President and CEO Gary Butler said in a statement. “Becoming part of BWXT enables us to advance that mission with greater scale, resources and opportunity for our employees.”

PCG will also continue existing work like components and services for General Dynamics Electric Boat, Bechtel Plant Machinery and other work.

A Fortune 1000 company, BWXT has approximately 10,000 employees and owns and operates 17 manufacturing facilities globally. It supports the U.S. and Canadian governments at more than 24 additional locations. It reported more than $3.19 billion in 2025 revenue, up 18% from 2024.