Morning Business Report: Credit card interest rates may increase

It’s an especially expensive time for people with credit card debt. The pain will likely worsen if the Federal Reserve raises interest rates today. The current national average rate on credit cards is already more than 20 percent, the highest it has been in decades.

Meanwhile, job openings tumble to lowest point in nearly two years. Layoffs jumped by nearly 250,000 to 1.8 million, the highest level since December 2020. The number of new hires stagnated at 6.15 million and resignations ticked down to 3.85 million from 3.98 million.

The DOW tumbles more than 300 points as banking sector worries reignite.
Regional Banks, again, were hit. Investors can’t shake worries about their businesses.

Consumers are expected to go all out for Mother’s Day this year. Consumers plan to spend a total of $35.7 billion on Mother’s Day. The National Retail Federation expects to see a record high of $274 per person. That estimate even surpasses the previous record high of $245 per person.

A survey found that one in three remote employees admit they’ve worked from their car or bed. This is a shift from pre-pandemic remote work. When people worked outside of the office prior to the pandemic, they reported working from a hotel, a friend or family member’s home, or a coffee.