BusinessWire (03/13/15)

Volt Information Sciences reported net revenue of $383.1 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2015, down 9% from $421.6 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2014. The company reported a net loss of $13.3 million, compared with a net loss of $17.1 million in the year-ago quarter. The company reported that pro forma operating results improved $5.2 million, from a pro forma operating loss of $10.2 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2014 to a loss of $5.0 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2015. Staffing service revenue totaled $360.8 million, down 8% from $392.3 million.

Wall Street Journal (03/12/15) Kathleen Madigan

A Wall Street Journal survey of 63 economists found they believe that a surging dollar and global slowdown will curb the nation’s economy through at least the first half of the year. They also expect a wider trade gap could keep economic growth under 3.0% this year. The economists forecast inflation-adjusted gross domestic product of 2.3% in the first quarter of 2015, little changed from the 2.2% pace of the fourth quarter of 2014. However, they anticipate growth of 3.0% in the second quarter, when much of the lost activity will be made up.

The economists forecast GDP growth of 2.9% for the year, up from a 2.4% increase in 2014 and a pace that is fast enough to push the unemployment rate down to 5.1% by December from 5.5% in February.

Bloomberg (03/13/15) Rich Miller

Although the number of jobs has increased, wages for U.S. manufacturing workers have not kept pace. Average hourly earnings for manufacturing industry employees rose 1.9% in 2014 after increasing 1.8% in 2013, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. However, the limited gains mean U.S. workers are more competitive compared with workers in China, where average urban wages rose 10.2% in the third quarter from a year earlier.