Economy

Despite the recent spike in gasoline prices, Southern California freeways should fill up during the Memorial Day weekend. Travel is expected to be up 4.6 percent this weekend compared to 2014, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California. If that prediction holds true it will be the largest year-over-year …

Two Inland Empire cities are among the fastest-growing cities in California. Beaumont’s population grew four percent while Chino’s grew 3.4 percent between last January and the first month of 2014, according to the state Department of Finance. That ranked Beaumont 6th and Chino 10th among the fastest-growing cities in the …

The U.S. economy added 223,000 jobs in April, a slight rebound from the lackluster first three months of the year. The unemployment rate fell to 5.4 percent, down from 5.5 percent in March and the lowest it’s been in seven years, according to data released Friday by the U.S. Department …

Mom is getting even more popular. U.S. consumers will spend an average of $172.63 this year to mark Mother’s Day, up $10 from last year and the highest level of spending in at least 12 years, according to the National Retail Federation’s 2015 Mother’s Day Consumer Spending Survey. Total spending …

Manufacturing in the Inland Empire recorded another solid month in April. The two-county region’s purchasing managers index last month was 60, the seventh consecutive month it’s been above 50 and the highest it’s been in three years, said Barbara Sirotnik, director of the Institute of Applied Research and Policy Analysis …

Inland motorists are taking a hit at the service station. The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline recently went up 26 cents, to $3.41, according to a report in The Press-Enterprise. That price was recorded Friday. That’s one of the largest increases ever recorded in the region, adding …