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- Thursday's Scoop: Fading 🌤️
Hey friends - almost Friday.
Insiders, look out for the Weekly Scoop tomorrow.
Here’s what you need to know today to inform your work, spending, and investments:
🌎 Big picture
Employers haven’t stepped up layoffs yet.
Canada’s trains are on strike.
Cheaper mortgages have helped spur more home buying.
How are you feeling about the economy? |
💼Work trends
Unemployment Rate: 4.3%
Relatively low, but up from record lows.
Employers haven’t stepped up layoffs yet. The Labor Department reported 232,000 initial jobless claims last week, up by 4,000 but still consistent with a stable job market. Despite concerns about unemployment rising to a post-pandemic high last month, layoffs remain low, and businesses seem more focused on scaling back hiring rather than cutting jobs.
Canada’s trains are on strike. Canada's two largest railways, Canadian National Railway Co and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd, have locked out over 9,000 unionized workers, halting much of the country's rail network after failed contract negotiations. The stoppage is already impacting commuter rail services in major cities and industries reliant on rail transport, including agriculture, chemicals, and manufacturing. The ripple effects are expected to be significant, with up to C$1 billion in trade disrupted daily and the potential for billions more in lost revenue. Concerns are mounting about the broader economic fallout straining the US.
🏠Housing trends
30yr Mortgage Rate: 6.5%
That’s down from 7.3% a year ago. (MBA)
Median Home Price: $422,600
That’s up from $406K a year ago. (Existing homes - NAR)
Cheaper mortgages have helped spur more home buying. The National Association of Realtors reported a surprising uptick in the number of existing home sales in July, rising 1.3% after four consecutive months of decline. Lower mortgage rates have helped improve affordability. Sales still remain sluggish compared to a year ago due to a shortage of affordable homes. The number of homes on the market increased last month, but not for good reasons. Climbing insurance premiums are pushing some homeowners to sell. A downward trend in mortgage rates could bring more sellers back on the market while improving affordability.
📈Investment trends
The Market: ⬇️ -0.9%
S&P 500: 5,570.64
1Mo: +1% | 1Yr: +27% | 5Yr: +97%
The market drifted lower on Thursday amidst a slow news day with more uninspiring economic data. Investors still expect policymakers to begin easing their economic restrictions and lowering borrowing costs next month.
🤓 Inside Scoop: How can I get better at saving money?
The three secrets to saving more money are creating a budget, trimming non-essential expenses, and automating.
Creating a budget isn’t necessarily about tracking every single dollar. Even reviewing our expenses once to establish a baseline budget provides us with a framework for spending decisions. If we know we’re trying to limit our dining out budget to $300 per month, we might be more likely to suggest a more affordable date night at the end of the month.
We also love finding easy wins. One thorough review of our monthly expenses can reveal hidden recurring subscriptions we don’t need or bills we might be able to negotiate lower. Some apps help identify these things more easily.
Finally, automation is the greatest tool for building wealth. We can hide money from ourselves by automating transfers directly from our paycheck account into different savings accounts for various purposes. If it’s in the spending account, it’s more likely to be spent.
🏭 Companies worth watching
👍👎 APPROVAL RATINGS
Join the board at America’s biggest companies. Vote and judge their decisions. (+2 pts)
 Alaska Airlines | Sky Alliance Alaska Airlines' plan to acquire Hawaiian Airlines cleared a major hurdle as the Justice Department's review period ended without objection. The $1.9B deal now awaits approval from the Transportation Department. This potential union could mark the largest US airline merger since Alaska merged with Virgin in 2016.
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 Peloton | Pedaling Forward Peloton reported its first sales increase in two years and lost less money last quarter due to aggressive cost-cutting efforts, particularly in marketing spending. The exercise bike maker is still searching for a new boss to guide its turnaround after its CEO resigned in May.
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 Alphabet | Compensated Google agreed to pay California $250M to support local newsrooms for the next five years to avoid a proposed bill requiring tech giants to pay for linking to news sites online. Studies show the proposed bill could have cost Google billions annually.
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💭Broader perspectives… (+2 pts)
Should social media platforms have to pay news sites when people share articles? |
 Zoom | Back to Business Zoom reported a jump in second-quarter sales and raised its annual revenue forecast, citing growing demand for its new AI-powered collaboration tools and products. The video-conferencing giant is seeking a new CFO to help sustain momentum beyond its pandemic-era success.
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 General Motors | Green Acceleration General Motors secured its most significant renewable energy deal yet, powering multiple assembly plants for 15 years and advancing its ambitious goal to run all US sites on renewable electricity by 2025. GM is the auto industry's leading purchaser of renewable energy.
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🛠️ Recommended resources (+2pts)
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