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WASHINGTON — Consumers spent a bit more in August than the previous month, a sign the economy is holding up even as inflation lifts prices for food, rent and other essentials.

Major ports and rail facilities across the U.S. Southeast have halted operations as one of the strongest hurricanes to ever hit the country advances as a tropical storm, causing disruptions along the way and resulting in another blow for already strained supply chains.

PUNTA GORDA, Fla. — Rescue crews piloted boats and waded through flooded streets Sept. 29 to save thousands of Floridians trapped after Hurricane Ian destroyed homes and businesses and left millions in the dark.

Funds from President Biden's American Rescue Plan Act — which provided flexible aid to states and local governments for COVID relief — are being used for infrastructure and public works projects across the country.

WASHINGTON — Battered by surging consumer prices and rising interest rates, the U.S. economy shrank at a 0.6% annual rate from April through June, the government announced Sept. 29, unchanged from its previous second-quarter estimate.

President Joe Biden on Sept. 28 warned oil and gas companies against increasing prices for consumers as Hurricane Ian neared landfall along Florida’s southwest coast.

OMAHA, Neb. — A union that rejected its deal with the nation’s freight railroads earlier this month now has a new tentative agreement, but officials cautioned that the contract dispute won’t be fully settled until all 12 rail unions approve their agreements this fall.

North Dakota is joining a handful of states that are merging their long-term freight and rail plans into a single document to maximize multimodal synergies and streamline federal reporting requirements.

Hurricane Ian is poised to become one of the costliest storms in U.S. history, threatening to slam Florida’s western coastline with 125 mph winds.