Senate approves bill to make daylight saving time permanent - March 16, 2022

President Joe Biden’s nominee for the top bank regulator at the Federal Reserve withdrew Tuesday after facing harsh criticism for arguing bank regulators should pay more attention to the financial risks associated with climate change. Sarah Bloom Raskin’s withdrawal comes one day after an influential Democratic senator and Republicans said they would not back her, with President Biden saying Raskin was subject to “baseless attacks from the industry and conservative groups.” Americans increased their retail spending in February by 0.3%, a slower increase than in January. When excluding gas stations purchases, sales fell 0.2% in February. Economists attribute the booming labor market to consumers’ increased spending power. High inflation is costing the typical U.S. household an additional $296 per month, according to a new analysis by Moody's Analytics. The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates Wednesday to combat the worst inflation in more than 40 years, marking the first rate increase since 2018. The increase comes as inflationary pressures officials assumed would lessen on their own have instead lingered , with some getting worse. U.S. stock futures gained ahead of the expected interest-rate increase. Pfizer asked U.S. health regulators to authorize a second booster dose of their COVID-19 vaccine for people 65 and older, an effort to bolster waning immunity that occurs several months after the first booster. The request is based on recent data in Israel during the omicron variant outbreak that showed those who got a fourth vaccine dose were half as likely to become infected and four times less likely to get severely sick from the coronavirus when compared to those with only three shots. The Senate unanimously passed legislation Tuesday that would make daylight saving time permanent across the U.S. starting in 2023, ending the twice-annual changing of clocks in an effort to promote brighter afternoons and increased economic activity. Many sleep experts say daylight saving time can disrupt our