With Interest: The Week in Business: CBS News Gets Its First Female President, and Theranos Goes Back to Court

Want this column in your inbox? Sign up here.

Hi there! Have you too been sucked into the decluttering vortex of Marie Kondo’s new Netflix show? You’re in good company. Who knew sock folding could be such a phenomenon?

I’m sure we’ve all got a lot of cleaning — er, “sparking joy” — to do today, so I’ll keep this week’s rundown of business news nice and tidy. Once you’re caught up, you’ll still have plenty of time to arrange all your T-shirts into neat little rectangles. It may not be quite as mesmerizing as watching strangers sort their laundry on television, but only just.

JAN. 6-12

What’s Up?

Your Government, Not at Work

The government shutdown continues to drag on, but at least tax refunds won’t be held up. The White House will order some Internal Revenue Service employees to return to work so that the tax filing season can begin and refunds can be issued. But this is a rare positive turn as the shutdown’s effects pile up. Crucial government loans have stalled. The Food and Drug Administration has stopped routine safety inspections of vegetables, fish, and other groceries (yikes). The Miami airport is closing a terminal because of a shortage of Transportation Security Administration officers. And despite volunteers’ efforts, the public bathrooms at some national parks remain gross.

The Fed’s Cooler Head

You can stop fretting about loan rates going up, at least for now. The Fed is taking a more cautious approach to raising interest rates, according to documents released from its December meeting. Like the rest of us, officials are wary about downshifts in economic growth and trade tensions with China. (The latter seemed a bit less ominous after trade talks last week, but bigger sticking points have yet to be resolved.) The Fed still plans to increase rates twice this year, but probably not at its January or March meetings. As the Fed’s chairman, Jerome H. Powell, put it on Thursday, “We’re going to be patient and watching, and waiting and seeing.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/12/business/the-week-in-business.html?partner=rss&emc=rss