Chipolte opening in Millwood

On Saturday, a Chipotle Mexican Grill will open in Millwood.

It’s location at 8909 E. Trent Ave. is near the intersection with North Argonne Road.

It will be the first Chipotle location in Millwood and the sixth in the surrounding area, including one in Spokane Valley and four in Spokane.

The 2,400 square-foot building was previously a Banner Bank location before it was converted into a restaurant.

Plans were submitted to the City of Spokane Valley in June of this year for improvements to renovate the building.

Efforts included replacing an exterior window, repainting the exterior and the renovation of the interior. Efforts included the construction of a dining are, kitchen and restrooms.

This work was accompanied by related structural, mechanical, electrical and plumbing work, according to the permit application.

The project costed an estimated $335,000, the application said.

The building will consist of a drive-thru pickup lane that allows guests to pick up digital orders without leaving their car, according to a company release.

There are an average of 25 employees at each Chipotle location, the release said.

It will be open every day from 10:45 a.m. to 10 p.m., the release said.

Dollar suffers bad year in 2023

The dollar is poised for its worst year since the onset of the pandemic as Wall Street bets the Federal Reserve is set to lower interest-rates after safely reining in prices.

After being whipsawed by false starts calling for the end of the Fed’s rate hiking regime, a Bloomberg gauge of the greenback is down nearly 3% since January in the steepest annual drop for the U.S. currency since 2020.

Much of the decline materialized in the fourth quarter on growing wagers that the Fed will sharply loosen policy next year as the U.S. economy slows.

That dents the dollar’s appeal as other central banks may keep their rates higher for longer.

Swaps traders are now factoring in Fed rate cuts of at least 150 basis points with the first cut coming as soon as March.

That’s up from less than 100 basis points in mid-November and double what policymakers penciled in at their most recent meeting.

Among speculative traders, dollar positioning has become all the more bearish since the Fed’s last meeting.

From staff and wire reports