Daily News 4/21/2015

April 21, 2015

Tuesday – April 21

The National Association for Business Economics reported this week that U.S. businesses expect sales to rebound anticipate hiring more workers in 2015. The first quarter of 2015 was a struggle for business owners, but they now feel that sales will ramp up in the next three months, according to a survey released on Monday. Almost three quarters of business owners surveyed expected higher sales for the second quarter, up from 68% from the January findings. Many business owners surveyed said that the West Coast port strike and the harsh winter weather, along with a strong dollar in the first quarter negatively impacted sales.

Prices at the gas pumps rose in the latest survey as oil prices jumped as supplies rose more slowly than expected. Though oil prices have risen lately, the national average price for a regular gallon of gasoline is at $2.46, still well below the $3.66 seen last year this time. California is the unfortunate state with the highest average price of $3.15 followed by Hawaii at $3.07 with the lowest seen in South Carolina at $2.21, Mississippi at $2.23 and Alabama $2.24.