U.S. Economy

Trump's plan for an overhaul of the U.S. tax code would eliminate federal income taxes on individuals earning less than $25,000 and married couples earning less than $50,000. He said those individuals would receive "a new one page form to send the IRS saying, 'I win.'"

Trump's plan would also disproportionally benefit wealthy earners by lowering the highest income tax rate from 39.6 percent to 25 percent, and businesses by cutting their tax rate — from major corporations to mom-and-pop shops — to no more than 15 percent.

You might think it's been a rough year for investors, but it's mostly been a smooth ride — and a profitable one.

Money is flowing into bonds issued by the riskiest of companies, home prices in some big U.S. cities are soaring, shares of technology companies are still near all-time highs, even after a drop this week, and auction houses are enjoying record sales of art. 

The price of the metal, which is often seen as a hedge against inflation and a weak dollar, slumped to its lowest in five years on Monday.

The dollar has rallied in recent months, diminishing the allure of holding gold. The U.S. economy has been on firmer footing, and tumult in China's markets and Greece's debt crisis have failed to restore gold's appeal as a safe haven.

In a report Thursday, the IMF forecasts 3.3 percent global growth this year, down from the 3.5 percent it predicted in April. The main culprit: The American economy, world's biggest, shrank at a 0.2 percent annual rate from January to March, hurt by nasty weather. 

The IMF is cutting the outlook for U.S. growth to 2.5 percent in 2015, from April's 3.1 percent. The U.S. economy grew 2.4 percent in 2014.

The economy, as measured by the gross domestic product, shrank at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.2 percent from January through March, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. That's better than last month's estimate of a 0.7 percent decrease.

Harsh winter weather slowed spending by keeping consumers away from shopping malls and auto dealerships. The trade deficit ballooned, slicing growth by the most since 1985 as exports fell and imports rose.