Tennessee wages grew nearly 16% faster than the U.S. as a whole in the past year, although the average hourly wage for workers of small businesses in the Volunteer State was still 10.3% less than the national average.
Among employers using Paychex to help process payroll or benefits, wages grew in Tennesssee by 3.35% to $24.74 an hour, according to a new Small Business Employment Index survey. Tennesesee trailed only New York and Caliornia in the rate of wage gains over the past 12 months. But Tennessee wages were still well below the $30.03 hourly average in California and the $28.18 an hour average in New York.
"The data shows consistent employment growth and yet another month of encouraging wage growth, two key indicators that the economy is off to a solid start in 2020," said Martin Mucci, Paychex president and CEO.
U.S. trade deficit drops for first time since 2013
The overall U.S. trade deficit shrank last year for the first time in six years as the economy cooled, domestic oil production soared and President Donald Trump waged an aggressive global trade war to rewrite America's trading terms.
The trade deficit for both goods and services fell to $616.8 billion in 2019, down $10.9 billion from the previous year, according to data released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday.
Both imports and exports fell as American factory activity slowed and businesses and consumers felt the impact of tariffs imposed on China, the European Union, Canada, Mexico and other nations. Total U.S. exports dropped $1.5 billion to roughly $2.5 trillion, while imports fell $12.5 billion to $3.1 trillion.
Soaring domestic oil production was a major factor in the shrinking trade deficit, cutting into imports of foreign crude oil by $30.3 billion last year. Exports of civilian aircraft also fell $12.6 billion last year, reflecting the fallout from the deadly crashes of Boeing's 737 Max airplane.
But the most dramatic changes in global trade flows occurred with China, the target of Trump's biggest economic offensive.
The trade deficit in goods with China shrank $73.9 billion to $345.6 billion in 2019. It was the first drop on an annual basis since 2016, as both the United States and China placed tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars of each others' products.
UAW workers at Ford get $6,600 profit share
Ford said Tuesday that its U.S. factory workers will receive $6,600 in profit-sharing checks, down $1,000 from the year before - reflecting the company's lower profits in 2019.
A year ago, profit sharing for Ford workers averaged $7,600, which was up from $7,500 in 2017. This year's checks reflect a 13% decline.
Not all 56,000 hourly workers are eligible for the negotiated benefit; checks are expected in March.
Ford awards its UAW employees $1,000 in profit sharing for every $1 billion in North American profit before taxes. Last year, GM workers averaged a profit sharing check of $10,750 while Fiat Chrysler workers averaged $6,000. Those automakers' 2019 earnings reports come out later this week.