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- Thursday's Scoop: Relief🌤️
Hey friends - almost Friday. I don’t have many Olympics updates for you today. Can someone give me the scoop?
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
Layoff rates are still pretty low.
The pandemic has pushed more job openings outside big cities.
Rising rent prices have caused New Yorkers to downsize even more than usual.
How are you feeling about the economy? |
💼Work trends
Unemployment Rate: 4.3%
Relatively low, but up from record lows.
Layoff rates are still pretty low. The Labor Department reported that initial jobless claims fell to 233,000 last week, lower than economists expected, calming concerns about an imminent recession with spiking unemployment. However, continuing claims, those requesting unemployment benefits for consecutive weeks, increased to the highest level since November 2021. This usually indicates that it’s getting harder to find new jobs. This data and last week’s July jobs report suggest that while employers have cut back their hiring pace significantly over the past year, they’re still hanging onto their employees.
The pandemic has pushed more job openings from big cities to smaller metro areas. A Federal Reserve Bank of New York analysis revealed job listings in major cities now account for 38% of total listings, down from 46% before the pandemic. Meanwhile, smaller metros and fringe areas saw an increase in job postings. There’s also a shift in job types: healthcare listings rose while software development roles declined. The shift in hiring outside major cities reflects an increase in remote work and growing demand for local services in smaller communities.
🤓 Inside Scoop: Why do I need an emergency fund?
An emergency fund is crucial as it provides financial security in case of unexpected expenses, such as medical emergencies, car repairs, or job loss.
Those who don’t have emergency savings will often turn to credit cards or expensive loans in times of trouble. Those high interest rates are designed to be challenging to pay off, creating compounding debt. It turns a short-term emergency into long-term debt problems.
We also want to ensure our emergency savings are in a safe cash account, not volatile investments like stocks. The stock market declines roughly 15% per year on average, and individual stocks have wider swings. In an emergency, we want our savings to be 100% there and easily accessible.
🏠Housing trends
30yr Mortgage Rate: 6.6%
That’s down from 7.1% a year ago. (MBA)
Median Home Price: $426,900
That’s up from $410K a year ago. (Existing homes - NAR)
Rising rent prices have caused New Yorkers to downsize even more than usual. In July, the average apartment size dropped to 945 square feet, nearly 10% smaller than last year, according to Miller Samuel Inc. and Douglas Elliman Real Estate. This trend comes as rents in America’s priciest neighborhood remain near record highs, with the median Manhattan rent holding steady at $4,300. Despite the high prices, lease signings hit a July record. A continued decline in mortgage costs could bring down rental prices as more renters look to buy homes.
📈Investment trends
The Market: ⬆️ +2.3%
S&P 500: 5,319.31
1Mo: -5% | 1Yr: +18% | 5Yr: +82%
The market soared on Thursday as investors celebrated a relatively low number of layoffs last week, easing concerns that the economy is on the brink of recession and mass layoffs. The last round of second-quarter corporate financial updates has also had enough bright spots to calm fears of an imminent recession.
🏭 Companies worth watching
👍👎 APPROVAL RATINGS
Join the board at America’s biggest companies. Vote and judge their decisions. (+2 pts)
 Delta Air Lines | Refund Frustration Delta Airlines faces a lawsuit from passengers who were denied refunds after a massive computer outage caused thousands of delays and cancellations, leaving many stranded and inconvenienced. The airline is separately suing CrowdStrike for causing the outage that has already cost Delta over $500 million.
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💭Broader perspectives… (+2 pts)
Should airlines be financially responsible for missed vacations if your flight’s delayed? |
 Intel | Chip Chaos Intel is facing a shareholder lawsuit alleging the chip giant misled investors about growing troubles in its foundry business, which led to over 15,000 layoffs and a suspended dividend. The tech giant faces fierce competition in the chip industry and has been investing heavily to catch up.
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 Boeing | Space Failure Boeing’s Starliner spaceship still hasn't been able to return from the International Space Station due to safety concerns, and NASA is considering using competitor SpaceX to bring the astronauts home. Starliner has been in space for over 60 days, weeks beyond its planned mission, raising questions about its reliability for future missions.
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 Eli Lilly | Healthy Profits Eli Lilly reported a significant increase in second-quarter profits driven by booming sales of its diabetes drug Mounjaro and weight loss injection Zepbound. The pharmaceutical giant raised its full-year sales forecast, reflecting improved production and supply, and continues to invest in expanding its manufacturing capabilities.
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 Roblox | Access Denied Turkey blocked access to teen gaming platform Roblox over concerns about content that could lead to child abuse. The country also blocked similar platforms like Instagram. Roblox expressed that it was committed to resolving the issue and ensuring safety measures for its young users.
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🛠️ Recommended resources (+2pts)
Future Sustainable Actions Competition: $500 CASH Prize
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Timeline: June 30 - August 31
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To Win $100: All Scoop readers make at least 500 cumulative green actions.
Click here to sign up.
Scoops members also receive 1 FREE week of NYC subway rides!
Our Future Card Review:
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Drawbacks:
It’s only available for US residents.
It’s not a credit card, so it doesn’t build your credit history.
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The sustainable actions that earn big rewards aren’t things you do frequently, like switching to clean energy, buying an electric vehicle, or installing solar panels.
It’s easy to find which brands offer cash back for FutureCard members, but you can’t shop through the app or search for products.
You don’t see statistics about the environmental impacts of your daily spending yet.
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