Commerce Department news and trends

Trending: Consumer Spending Drives Q3 GDP Despite Disposable Income Pressure

October 30, 2024
Back-to-School Shopping Drives Consumer Spending Surge in September
Economy // October 17, 2024

September’s retail sales data showed a (slight) acceleration of spending from August, though we’re well off past peaks. And speaking of past peaks — looking at year-over-year growth rates and patterns, as documented by PYMNTS Intelligence, the summit of early 2023, at least for the...

Connected Car Tech From China Faces US Ban
Connected Economy // September 22, 2024

The U.S. is reportedly readying a ban on Chinese technology in connected and autonomous cars. That prohibition — borne of national security concerns — from the U.S. Commerce Department is expected on Monday (Sept. 23), Reuters reported, citing two sources familiar with the matter. Those...

US Targets ‘Malicious’ AI Use at November Safety Summit
artificial intelligence // September 18, 2024

The U.S. will host a multi-national summit in November to discuss safe AI development. U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told The Associated Press (AP) Wednesday (Sept. 18) that this will be the “first get-down-to-work meeting” following gatherings in the U.K. and South Korea to discuss the possible dangers...

Managing Risk and Uncertainty Headline Commerce Department’s Supply Chain Summit
Supply Chain // September 10, 2024

When it comes to controlling for what’s controllable, supply chain resilience is top of mind. After all, against the backdrop of today’s shifting and dynamic operating environment, the enterprise focus will need to shift from viewing supply chains as cost centers to recognizing them as...

Interviews & Exclusives
Trending: Consumer Spending Drives Q3 GDP Despite Disposable Income Pressure

October 30, 2024
It’s a truism that as the U.S. consumer goes, so goes the economy. And consumers are still opening their wallets and purses, tapping to pay, clicking to pay, swiping their cards; by extension, gross domestic product continues its upward trajectory, though at a pace slowing from previous readings. The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis […]

Consumer Spending May Not Be as Resilient as Retail Sales Data Indicates

September 20, 2023
The Federal Reserve’s staying pat, for now. The announcement on Wednesday (Sept. 20) that the central bank is leaving interest rates unchanged — at a more than 20-year high —...

Retail Sales Top Estimates, but Key Discretionary Spending Declines

August 15, 2023
Retail sales keep on chugging along. To that end, the data released Tuesday (Aug. 15) by the Commerce Department showed that consumer spending, overall, remained strong against a backdrop where...

Retailers Rethink Strategies as Consumer Spending Sinks

March 16, 2023
January’s consumer spending numbers have turned out to be a temporary reprieve, as customers continue to cut back. The most recent Commerce Department spending numbers were released on Wednesday (Mar....

Quick Reads
Connected Car Tech From China Faces US Ban

September 22, 2024
The U.S. is reportedly readying a ban on Chinese technology in connected and autonomous cars. That prohibition — borne of national security concerns — from the U.S. Commerce Department is expected on Monday (Sept. 23), Reuters reported, citing two sources familiar with the matter. Those sources said the proposal would ban the import and sale […]

US Targets ‘Malicious’ AI Use at November Safety Summit

September 18, 2024
The U.S. will host a multi-national summit in November to discuss safe AI development. U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told The Associated Press (AP) Wednesday (Sept. 18) that this will be...

Commerce Department Proposes Mandatory Reporting Requirements for AI Firms

September 09, 2024
The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) aims to require the world’s leading artificial intelligence (AI) developers and cloud providers to provide detailed reporting to the federal government....

Business Equipment Orders Fall Amid Election/Inflation Uncertainty

August 26, 2024
U.S. companies ordered less business equipment last month, new government data shows.  Figures released Monday (Aug. 26) by the Commerce Department show that the value of core capital goods, typically...