Washington

Construction material costs, which often rise faster than the consumer price index, have surged over the last year while a shortage of skilled construction workers has plagued the industry.

The proposed gas tax holiday would hold the Highway Trust Fund harmless with a $10 billion subsidy.

The Federal Reserve has started a hiking cycle that's expected to continue with half-point increases in June and July, Marvin Loh, senior macro strategist at State Street Global Markets, will assess the June Federal Open Market Committee meeting and tell what he expects the panel to do in the future.

Democratic senators led by Bob Menendez urged the Federal Reserve to take a more active role in the selection process of the heads of its regional banks so that more diverse candidates would be considered.

The lighter calendar may help ease the imbalance between demand and supply, as selling pressure in the secondary has weighed significantly on the market tone.

The U.S. central bank should raise interest rates as fast as it can without causing undue harm to financial markets or the economy, said Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Thomas Barkin.

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester said the risk of a recession in the U.S. economy is increasing, and that it will take several years to return to the central bank’s 2% inflation goal.

The Federal Reserve said it would do what is needed to get prices under control, reiterating that price stability is necessary to support a strong labor market and calling its commitment to reining in inflation “unconditional.”

Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Esther George said she opposed the Fed’s biggest interest-rate increase in almost three decades because the move, combined with the shrinking of the central bank’s balance sheet, created uncertainty about the outlook.

It's the third time this month that the SEC has announced charges against city officials for disclosure-related violations.