Tag: Worst

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Pulp non-fiction: the worst business books of 2022

Some 10,000 business enterprise publications are printed annually in the US, the world’s largest marketplace. Practically all are unputdownable, of study course, but inevitably just a few clunkers slip by means of publishers’ rigorous filters. Here are some (solely imaginary) examples of titles to avoid in 2022.

Cozy Up To Your Co-Worker! An educational and a coach with zero hands-on management experience serve up just beneath 300 web pages of wishful imagining about how a mixture of purpose, empathy, variety, inclusion — and hugs! — will place a smile on the experience of your fatigued subordinates and empower you to delay their extended overdue spend increase for a handful of extra months.

The ME in Team. The recently retired chief executive of a business you have by no means read of has invested a tiny portion of his multimillion-greenback pay-off to seek the services of a ghostwriter. The final result is this tone-deaf account of his heroic army company and subsequent seamless increase to the prime, glossing about embarrassments, lawsuits, earnings warnings and recurring rounds of redundancies. History composed by the victor.

Sq. Pegs: Smash Your Technique into Condition. 7 companions from a perfectly-acknowledged management consultancy turn their PowerPoint slides and the private insights you supplied as their shopper into what seems to be ostensibly like a model new way to do strategy. The great information: you now know where by your costs went. The lousy information: you are about to obtain a box of complimentary copies for you and your govt crew, the world’s heaviest and least welcome company card.

Who Stole My Fable? A whimsical tale of woodland creatures, who come across a way to conclusion their very long-jogging feud and embark on a miracle of co-creation that will increase the forest’s return on investment though combating local climate modify. Advised in a single- and two-syllable words, damaged up by blank internet pages and negative cartoons. Aesop, it ain’t. $30 in hardback from an airport bookstore in close proximity to you. Will sell millions.

Get rid of Them: Management Classes of the Tyrants. There is significantly to be reported for autocrats and dictators, but in the previous this has mainly taken the type of unconvincing praise from cowering minions. Now, at previous, a trim manual that enumerates the legitimate business advantages of an iron-fisted administration type, putting the bullets back into bullet points, from Attila the Hun to Stalin.

Prosperous, Richer, Richest. Who understood that joining the hyper-wealthy was this straightforward? Implausibly good-seeking co-authors with a considerably-adopted Instagram account clarify the tricks of crypto and meme-investing, and invite you to stake your tough-earned retirement price savings on their Twitter-led expenditure tactic and turn into the next Warren Buffett or Elon Musk. Hurry, before they pull up the ladder and the complete Ponzi plan collapses.

The Bumper E book of Branding. Textual content is so 2021. Appreciate this large photo-reserve, complete with hand-drawn graphs and glossy bespoke images, all in an unfeasibly huge format suited only for display on the atrium espresso tables of the marketing and advertising company that funded it. Paired with an on-line course in reputation administration and a world-wide motivational tour (tickets on sale now, Omicron permitting).

The Deepest Dive: The Scandal That Briefly Unsettled Worldwide Capitalism. Three US newspaper reporters who never genuinely received on in the initial position have been persuaded to transform their unreadably detailed, award-winning sequence of investigative reviews into a quite, extremely long e book. Every chapter commences with a limo pulling up in front of a luxury resort. After this, the authors will stop journalism for PR and never ever discuss to just about every other once again. Close household customers only.

Nudge Me When I Slide Asleep. Well-known social science experiments retold for the thousandth time in the sort of upbeat tone that implies they comprise the top secret to lifestyle itself. You’ll discover how to be frequently enthusiastic about trivial breakthroughs! You are going to understand for the initially time how a coach revived an obscure US sporting activities franchise! You will surprise why the authors are generating much more money than the associate professors who did the investigation in the initially spot! You’ll in no way get an additional behavioural science e-book again.

Hi Ho, Hi Ho: The Unthinkable Upcoming of Function. Did you know we devote a lot more time performing than we do sleeping? You did? In no way thoughts: this guide will allow you to commit the time you really don’t shell out doing work looking through about perform and, maybe, if you’re fortunate, dreaming about it. Gig personnel: goggle at the plan of a utopia the place you have a genuine position once again. Complete-time personnel: tremble at the imagined of a dystopia where by gig staff consider your job. Bosses: bear in mind that examining small business guides in do the job hours is a sackable offence.

Andrew Hill has aided filter publications for the FT’s Company Reserve of the 12 months Award due to the fact 2005, and, fortunately, has never been quick of opportunity winners.

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Global bond markets on course for worst year since 1999

World wide bond markets are on program for their worst yr given that 1999 after a world wide surge in inflation battered an asset class that is typically allergic to growing prices.

The Barclays global combination bond index — a wide benchmark of $68tn of sovereign and corporate credit card debt — has sent a adverse return of 4.8 per cent so much in 2021.

The decrease has been mostly driven by two periods of hefty advertising in government financial debt. At the start out of the calendar year, traders dumped more time-term govt bonds in the so-referred to as “reflation trade” as they guess that the restoration from the pandemic would usher in a period of sustained development and inflation. Then, in the autumn, shorter-dated financial debt took a hammering as central banks signalled they had been getting ready to react to high ranges of inflation with desire charge rises.

In the US, which contains extra than a third of the index and noticed inflation surge to a 4-decade high of 6.8 for every cent in November, the 10-calendar year US Treasury produce has risen to 1.49 per cent from .93 per cent at the start out of the year, reflecting falling bond rates. The two-12 months yield has climbed to .65 for each cent from .12 per cent.

“We shouldn’t be much too surprised that bonds are a terrible investment when inflation is operating at 6 per cent,” stated James Athey, a portfolio manager at Aberdeen Common Investments. “The bad news for bond buyers is that subsequent calendar year appears to be like tricky much too. We have the likely for a even more shock if central banking institutions shift a lot quicker than expected, and I never think [riskier bonds] are specifically attractively priced.”

Column chart of Annual return of the Barclays global aggregate bond index ({21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}) showing A bad year for bonds

During four decades of mounting bond markets, years of adverse returns have been somewhat number of and considerably involving. The global mixture index past recorded weaker returns in 1999, when it lost 5.2 for each cent as buyers fled bond marketplaces for the booming dotcom-era stock market.

Despite 2021’s losses and the prospect of monetary tightening following yr from the Federal Reserve and other central financial institutions, some fund professionals argue it is untimely to call time on the 40-calendar year bull industry in preset profits.

Extended-time period yields peaked in March and have fallen again even as marketplaces moved to rate in three fascination charge rises from the Fed and four from the Lender of England subsequent calendar year, alongside with a reduction in the European Central Bank’s asset purchases.

The latest energy of lengthy-dated personal debt is a signal that traders believe that that central bankers will derail the economic restoration, or induce a stock market place promote-off, if they transfer to tighten policy as well quickly, according to Nick Hayes, a portfolio manager at Axa Financial investment Supervisors.

“The additional you increase premiums nowadays, the extra they have to occur back down in a pair of decades time,” Hayes mentioned. “And if the equity market place retraces a bit, folks will quickly like bonds all over again. I’m not indicating we get double-digit returns next year, but the straightforward point is if you look again more than the many years, a adverse calendar year has tended to be followed by a favourable a single.”

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Meta/Facebook is the worst company of the year: Yahoo Finance readers

Every December, Yahoo Finance selects a Company of the Year, based on its market performance and its achievements that particular year. In 2021, Microsoft (MSFT) took home the crown, smashing through the $2 trillion market capitalization mark and seeing a 53{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} surge in its stock price as of Dec. 16, year-to-date.

However, the spirit of Festivus has taught us we can learn just as much from the bad as the good by airing our grievances. That’s why Yahoo Finance also selects a Worst Company of the Year, polling our audience as to which company upset them the most.

Our survey’s 1,541 respondents were mad about a lot this year, from the Robinhood (HOOD) trading freezes last winter to electric truck startup Nikola still not having its act together. But one company irked them the most — Facebook (FB). The survey’s results shed more light on why the company decided to rebrand this year to a new name: Meta Platforms.

The open-ended survey was posted on Yahoo Finance on Dec. 4 and Dec. 5, and dozens of names were submitted. Facebook received 8{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} of the write-in vote.

Facebook has had its share of controversies this year. It’s been under the antitrust microscope and faced a flurry of allegations from a whistleblower claiming Facebook ignored safety issues for the sake of growth. Congress is constantly demanding answers from the company on both fronts. At the same time, some critics, including conservatives, say Facebook over-policed the platform’s speech and stifled their voices. Other critics, including those on the left side of the aisle, claim Facebook allows the spread of misinformation.

US whistleblower and former Facebook engineer Frances Haugen gives a testimony on the negative impact of big tech companies products on users, at the European Parliament in Brussels, on November 8, 2021. - Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen urged the EU to remain steadfast against big tech on November 8, boosting European efforts for new laws against US giants. The former Facebook engineer leaked a trove of internal documents that have sparked weeks of criticism of the social media giant. She met with key lawmakers in Brussels responsible for pushing through major legislation that could force the world's biggest tech firms to rethink the way they do business. (Photo by JOHN THYS / AFP) (Photo by JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images)

US whistleblower and former Facebook engineer Frances Haugen gives a testimony on the negative impact of big tech companies products on users, at the European Parliament in Brussels, on November 8, 2021.(Photo by JOHN THYS / AFP) (Photo by JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images)

What is especially interesting about the Company Formerly Known as Facebook is just how many and varied the reasons people dislike it. It received 50{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} more votes than the second-place finisher, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, not for one singular offense but for a litany of grievances from groups of people that may have little else to agree about.

There were significant complaints of censorship, mainly of the right and conservative voices that felt that the “free-speech police” was being unfair and they were owed the right to say whatever they wanted to on the platform.

On the other side, people hectored the platform for failing to police significant misinformation that in the view of critics contributed to people not taking the pandemic’s potential for death seriously (797,877 official deaths in the U.S. and counting). Facebook was also blamed for the rise of far-right extremism and “undermining democracy worldwide,” as one respondent put it.

Outside of the political conversation, many respondents were upset with the company’s effects on children and young people, citing its photo-sharing site Instagram and its effects on mental health, after internal documents revealed the company knew Instagram made teenage girls feel worse about body image issues but didn’t address the problem.

Facebook/Meta Platforms did not respond to a request for comment.

Can the company redeem itself?

Around 30{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} of Yahoo Finance readers who responded to the survey said that Facebook or Meta could redeem itself.

One respondent said Facebook could redeem itself by acknowledging and apologizing for what it did and donating a “sizable amount” of its profits for a foundation to help reverse its harm. While some people saw the Meta rebrand as a cynical attempt to change the conversation, following Don Draper’s advice in scandal, others were excited by the potential of a new direction that could a) be interesting and b) something different from the aging social media model.

A significant amount of responses focused on executives and founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Zuckerberg has certainly never been Mr. Popular, which Aaron Sorkin and David Fincher decided was the reason he created “The Facebook,” in the movie “The Social Network.” But he has long been seen as a visionary with an uncanny knack at predicting (or manifesting) the future, making it unlikely he departs from the company he founded, shaped, and pivoted.

One way it could redeem itself, for the angry investors in the survey, would be to grow its stock price, apparently. The stock is up 22{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} year-to-date — strong, but lagging the S&P 500— but down around 13{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} from its September high.

Zuckerberg and co. have their challenges cut out for them in 2022. Fortunately for them, they’re already reinventing the company.

The (dis)honorable mentions

The annual airing of grievances saw a few companies get special mention from Yahoo Finance readers.

  • Alibaba’s (BABA) almost 50{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} drop year-to-date earned it the number two spot. Investors are upset at having lost money.

  • AT&T’s (T) loss of 24{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} year-to-date as the S&P 500 saw a 24{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} increase. Like Alibaba, this is a story of share price dissatisfaction.

  • Nikola (NKLA) and its many issues last year, with a short seller claiming it was a fraud.

  • Tesla (TSLA) stock has soared, but people are furious with the company rolling out products before they are ready, sexual harrassment scandals, and the general cult of personality surrounding 2021’s Time Person of the Year.

  • Market-maker Citadel Securities and retail trading platform Robinhood (HOOD) had their time in the doghouse during the Gamestock hubbub almost a year ago, and many have not forgotten — and continue to see these players as icing out ordinary retail investors they purport to help.

This was an open-ended survey performed on Survey Monkey via the Yahoo Finance home page from Dec. 4 to Dec,. 5. 1,541 people responded.

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Ethan Wolff-Mann is a Senior Writer and Chief of Staff at Yahoo Finance. When he is reporting, he focuses on investing, consumer issues, and personal finance. Follow him on Twitter @ewolffmann.

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Dow plunges 905 points in Black Friday selloff, books worst day in over a year as WHO declares new COVID ‘variant of concern’

U.S. stock benchmarks suffered withering losses on Friday as stock and commodity markets plunged, after scientists detected a new COVID variant in South Africa that could be to blame for a recent sharp surge in cases, especially in Europe.

U.S. markets were closed for Thanksgiving on Thursday and ended at 1 p.m. Eastern Time on Friday, three hours earlier than usual, and bond market trading ends at 2 p.m., an hour earlier than is typical.

How are stock-index futures trading?
  • The S&P 500
    SPX,
    -2.27{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}
    fell 106.84 points, or 2.3{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, to 4,594.62.

  • The Dow Jones Industrial Average
    DJIA,
    -2.53{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}
    slumped 905.04 points, or 2.5{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, to 34,899.34, with the index logging the worst daily drop since Oct. 28, 2020, according to FactSet data.

  • The decline for the Dow saw it mark its first close below its 50-day moving average at 35,261.93 since Oct. 14.

  • The Nasdaq Composite Index COMP declined 353.57 points, or 2.2{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, to15,491.66.

  • The decline for the S&P 500, Dow and Nasdaq Composite posted their worst Black Friday performance since 1950.

On Wednesday, the Dow industrials
DJIA,
-2.53{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}
fell 9.42 points to finish nearly flat at 35,804.38. The S&P 500
SPX,
-2.27{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}
slipped 0.2{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} to close at 4,701.46, just 0.1{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} below its Nov. 18 record close of 4,704.54, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The Nasdaq Composite Index
COMP,
-2.23{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}
rose 0.4{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} to 15,84.23.

What’s driving the market?

It was an ugly day for stock investors during a thinly traded Black Friday session, which was susceptible to big swings on alarming news from public health officials who were assessing a new variant of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

Late in the session, the World Health Organization’s technical advisory group assigned the B. 1.1.529 variant of the virus the Greek letter omicron and declared it a “variant of concern,” as it did with the delta variant.

Fear of a new variant overshadowed the usual focus on U.S. Black Friday shopping day, which puts the focus on retailers as consumers shop for bargains.

Particularly notable about the variant is the “large number of mutations, some of which are concerning,” the WHO group said in a statement. The mutations could make omicron more resistant to the current batch of vaccines.  

The discovery of the new COVID strain was announced on Friday by South Africa’s health minister Joe Phaahla. He said scientists were concerned because of its high number of mutations and the dramatic surge in infections the country had seen over the past four or five days.

“The pandemic and COVID variants remain one of the biggest risks to markets, and are likely to continue to inject volatility over the next year(s),” wrote Keith Lerner, co-chief investment officer and chief market strategist at Truist Advisory Services, in a Friday note. “It’s hard to say at this point how lasting or impactful this latest variant will be for markets,” the analyst wrote. 

The omicron strain has been detected in Botswana and in Hong Kong in travelers who had visited South Africa.

“The one bull in the China shop that could truly derail the global recovery has always been a new strain of Covid-19 that swept the world and caused the reimposition of mass social retractions,” said Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst, at OANDA, in a note. “All we know so far is the B. 1.1.529 is heavily mutated but markets are taking no chances.”

“Just when you thought Covid was being controlled in a holiday shortened week,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research, in emailed comments.

“‘It makes sense to have a market significant correction given the high level of uncertainty.’”


— Jay Hatfield, CEO and portfolio manager at Infrastructure Capital Management

Trading around the Thanksgiving holiday is often associated with lower trading volumes as traders typically wait until Monday to return to work. There was no U.S. economic data on the calendar for Friday.

After new cases stabilized at 200 a day, South Africa reported more than 1,200 on Wednesday and 2,465 on Thursday.

The U.K. government is banning flights from South Africa along with five other African nations, effective Friday.

“Predictably, energy, travel related and financials are the leading decliners and treasuries are rallying,” wrote Jay Hatfield, CEO and portfolio manager at Infrastructure Capital Management, in emailed comments on Friday.

“It makes sense to have a market significant correction given the high level of uncertainty,” the money manager wrote.

“At this stage very little is known,” Deutsche Bank strategists, led by Jim Reid, told clients in a note. “Mutations are often less severe so we shouldn’t jump to conclusions but there is clearly a lot of concern about this one. Also South Africa is one of the world leaders in sequencing so we are more likely to see this sort of news originate from there than many countries. Suffice to say at this stage no one in markets will have any idea which way this will go.”

Read: Facing the biggest inflation surge in 30 years, shoppers expect to spend a lot more this holiday season

Which companies are in focus?
  • Drugmaker stocks were on the rise, including Pfizer PFE advanced by 6.1{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, and Moderna MRNA stock rallied by about 21{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}.

  • Travel-related stocks were on the backfoot: Expedia EXPE fell nearly 9,5{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}

  • Shares of airliners and cruise ships Delta Air Lines DAL, fell 8.3{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, Norwegian Cruise NCLH, down 11.4{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, and Royal Caribbean RCL shares slid 13{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, United Airlines UAL declined 9.6{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, Southwest Airlines LUV shares dropped 4.3{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, American Airlines’s AAL stock slumped 8.8{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}.

  • Meanwhile, shares of companies associated with the stay-at-home trade were set to rise, including Netflix NFLX rose 1.1{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} and Peloton Interactive Inc.
    PTON,
    +5.67{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}
    advanced 3.4{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, while Zoom Video Communications Inc. shares
    ZM,
    +5.72{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}
    rallied 5.7{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}.

How are other markets faring?
  • The 10-year Treasury note TMUBMUSD10Y retreated by more than 10 basis points to ell to around 1.54{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, versus 1.644{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} on Wednesday at 3 p.m. ET. The bond market was closed on Thursday in observance of U.S.

  • The ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY, a measure of the currency against a basket of six major rivals, was down 0.7{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}.

  • Gold futures for December delivery GCZ21 rose less than 0.1{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} to trade at $1,785.30 an ounce. U.S. oil futures CLF22 traded off more than 12{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} at around $68.27 a barrel.

  • The Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP closed 3.7{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} lower, and London’s FTSE 100 index UKX also gave up 3.6{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}.

  • In Asia, the Shanghai Composite SHCOMP finished off 0.5{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} higher, while the Hang Seng Index HSI lost 2.7{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} in Hong Kong. China’s CSI 300 000300 declined 0.7{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} and Japan’s Nikkei 225 NIK finished 2.5{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} lower.

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Here are the best and worst states for jobs

The number of Americans applying for first-time jobless claims reached the lowest level since November 1969, with the number of filings dropping to 199,000. 

Improvements in the labor market have been broad-based, with the weekly rate of those rendered newly unemployed falling precipitously across the country since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic last year. 

As usual, the Labor Department’s latest weekly report included a breakdown of the states and territories with the highest and lowest insured unemployment rates, or the ratio of people claiming jobless benefits divided by the overall size of the labor force. For a number of states, this key labor market metric improved to its best level in two years, showing an even smaller proportion of their populations were claiming jobless benefits than before the coronavirus outbreak. 

“I don’t even think you can call it an economic recovery anymore,” Chris Rupkey, chief economist for FWDBONDS, told Yahoo Finance Live. “Remember the best economy in 50 years late in 2019? Well, we’re way, way, way above that right now. I don’t even think you can call this a reopening of the economy after the pandemic — we’re miles and miles ahead of the fourth quarter of 2019.”

South Dakota was the state with the lowest insured unemployment rate. As of the week ended Nov. 6, the state’s rate was at 0.2{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} on a seasonally unadjusted basis. The last time this figure was below that level was in October 2019. 

The national average insured unemployment rate was at 1.3{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} for the same week, or the lowest since December 2019. At its worst pandemic-era point in May 2020, during widespread lockdowns and layoffs, the insured unemployment rate peaked at 15.9{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} nationally.

Other states also posted insured unemployment rates well below the national average. Alabama’s insured unemployment rate for the week ended Nov. 6 came in at 0.3{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, or the lowest on record for the state based on data spanning back to the 1980s. Nebraska’s rate also came in at 0.3{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} for the period, marking a two-year low. 

Five states — Kansas, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Utah and Virginia — posted insured unemployment rates of 0.4{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} for the start of November, also representing a marked improvement from their pandemic-era highs.

A little less than half of U.S. states and territories — or 19 in total — posted insured unemployment rates at or above the national average at the start of the month. Of these, the Virgin Islands saw the highest rate at 3.0{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, which marked a slight uptick from the prior week’s 2.2{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} rate. Still, this was well below its pandemic-era peak of nearly 18{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} in June 2020. 

Meanwhile, Puerto Rico, Washington, D.C., and Alaska each posted insured unemployment rates of 2.7{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, tying for the second-highest rates in the nation, based on the latest data. California followed close behind with an insured unemployment rate of 2.6{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}. Many of the states posting persistently elevated insured unemployment rates have been those that rely heavily on tourism and their service economies, given the ongoing recovery still taking place in these industries after the outbreak. 

“Workers remain in high demand in a labor market where payrolls and the civilian labor force remain well below pre-pandemic levels,” wrote Rubeela Farooqi, chief U.S. economist for High Frequency Economics, in a note Wednesday morning. “Developments on the health front remain a risk that may weigh on labor supply, but we expect workers to gradually return to the labor market, as the cushion from savings diminishes, supporting job growth over coming months.”

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Emily McCormick is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter: @emily_mcck

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Why these are the worst stocks to own right now: Goldman Sachs

Not every sector of the market is a longer-term buy even with stocks continuing to be on autopilot, warn strategists at Goldman Sachs. 

Some of the worst stocks to own in a U.S. economy trying to claw back from the COVID-19 pandemic are those with high exposure to tight labor markets, which runs the risk of pressuring profit margins as wages are hiked.

“Labor market tightness will remain a challenge during the next few years. Investors should avoid stocks with high labor costs relative to EBIT [earnings before interest and taxes],” says David Kostin, Goldman Sachs chief U.S. equity strategist, in a new research note to clients. 

Several of the companies that fall under this category, per Goldman’s analysis includes IBM (IBM), Raytheon (RTX), HCA Healthcare (HCA), FedEx (FDX) and Dollar General (DG).

On the other hand, Kostin and his team think reopening stocks with cyclical exposure are the better bet at the moment. 

Explains Kostin, “While virus counts are now rising and weighing on reopening stocks, as the winter wave passes, declining virus and inflation headwinds should provide a near-term boost to corporate revenues and margins for the businesses most exposed to these challenges.”

Companies such as Best Buy (BBY), Home Depot (HD), Lowe’s (LOW), D.R. Horton (DHI), KB Home (KBH) and Lennar (LEN) appear positioned for a cyclical upswing, points out Kostin.

In the near-term, however, both high labor exposure stocks and reopening stocks may work well for investors as markets digest recent Federal Reserve news.

Monday morning, President Biden renominated Powell as Fed chief, ending weeks of speculation on the topic. Biden also nominated Lael Brainard to the position of vice chair. Both are seen as monetary policy doves by market participants, hinting the Fed may be inclined to push off interest rate hikes in 2022 even with inflation remaining elevated.

In turn, that would be good for valuation multiples.

Stock markets soared on the news, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising by more than 300 points at one point early in Monday’s session.

“With the Fed on hold until mid-year 2022 and bond yields below 2{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996}, equities will remain the asset of choice for both institutional and retail investors,” contends Kostin. 

The closely watched strategist sees the S&P 500 hitting 5,100 by the of 2022, up about 10{21df340e03e388cc75c411746d1a214f72c176b221768b7ada42b4d751988996} from current levels.

Brian Sozzi is an editor-at-large and anchor at Yahoo Finance. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn.

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