Of course, this positive data does not indicate that a significant number of jobs are being added to the economy — just that the economy is not hemorrhaging them at near the rate we have been seeing throughout the recession. But the news is still encouraging, as it indicates a certain measure of stability in the jobs market, and in the economy. With fewer jobs being lost, there is hope that consumer confidence will return, and with it the important economic driver of consumer spending.

Initially, the stock market rallied heavily on the news. However, other considerations are now taking precedence, and the stock market has pared its gains rather dramatically as mid-day approaches.

Image source: Daylife

Post from: EveryJoe

U.S. Unemployment Rate Drops

As one might imagine, investors latched onto this news and took it as a cue to sell the dollar. After seeing gains for the dollar last week, Bullard’s remarks prompted a round of profit taking. Additionally, the comments also helped stocks. Confident that the Fed is willing to continue propping up Wall Street, investors are in a buying mood, sending the stock market higher an hour and a half after opening. The gains do appear to be slowing, though, as day traders swoop in to take their profits from earlier.

However, this week is expected to be a good one for stocks. Investors are hoping that the holiday shopping season, which kicks off with Black Friday the day after Thanksgiving, will help provide some fuel for the fire. With a short trading week, and the news so far good, it looks as though this week, at least, will be a good one for the stock market. We’ll see if it holds if Black Friday turns out to be a disappointment.

Image source: Fletcher6 via Wikimedia Commons

Post from: EveryJoe

James Bullard Helps Stocks, Destroys Dollar

Recently, an acquaintance of mine was laid off — along with dozens of others — from a local company. Imagine our surprise when the Classifieds showed job openings in that company two weeks later! The reason? In the interest of cost-cutting, the company laid off around 50 of higher-earners and then posted job openings for about 20 jobs with entry-level pay.

This sort of practice is relatively common. The magazine SmartMoney points out the following: “Companies cutting jobs are often hiring in some areas, even as they shrink in others.” Instead of writing off companies that have announced lay offs, it is a good idea to check into where the lay offs are taking place, and then see which divisions of the company might be hiring.

Because so many people overlook businesses that recently laid off workers, it might be that you have less competition for new job openings. Of course, the company may be on the verge of collapse and there may not be any job openings. But it doesn’t hurt to ask.

Image source: Daylife

Post from: EveryJoe

Job Hunt: Openings at Firms with Lay Offs

One way that you can improve your chances of getting better pricing is to look at the secondary market. There are a number of people looking to get out of their current leases, and some of them have Tier-1 lease pricing. Here is something from a press release I received from LeaseTrader.com:

“Keeping good credit is the most important part of a family’s balance sheet during this period of economic recovery,” said Sergio Stiberman, CEO and founder of LeaseTrader.com. “We’re working with people every day who have the credit to get a car lease but can’t qualify for the best payment at a dealer. Through lease transfer, these people are getting approved to take over a lease that was initially tier-1 pricing with a great, low payment.”

This news is good news for those looking for alternative solutions. However, it is important to be careful and read the fine print before agreeing to any lease swap. You want to make sure you understand the terms, and that you are actually getting what you want.

Image source: TheAlieness GiselaGiardino via Flickr

Post from: EveryJoe

Tier-1 Lease Pricing with Lower Credit

1. Consider probabilities: Warren Buffett is a fan of the card game Bridge, in which successful players beat their opponents by considering probabilities. Likewise, you can think of stocks in terms of probabilities. The Investopedia article points out that investors who consider the probability of a good return over 10 years is likely to ride out down cycles to find success in the long-term.
2. Realize that investing has psychological aspects: We would like to be unemotional in our investments, but instead, it is better to look at how you approach investing from a psychological standpoint, and then find a mindset that works for you.
3. Don’t pay attention to market forecasts: No one can truly predict the market. Buffett points out that investors should instead pay attention to the fundamentals of their investments, and choose those that will do well over the long term. These will likely ride out down markets, and do well during bull markets.
4. Wait for the good investments: Instead of investing in a bunch of mediocre companies, Warren Buffett suggests that you think as though you only have around 20 investment choices for your lifetime portfolio. This way, you will carefully choose what is most likely to work well for you over a lifetime.

As you can see, there is a lot of potential for making good decisions and thinking in a way that will help you see long-term success with your portfolio. But it requires research and discipline.

Image source: Ethan Bloch via Flickr

Post from: EveryJoe

8 Tips for Thinking Like Buffett, Part 2

Using an e-mail address or mobile phone number, consumers will be able to send money to anyone they know, whether it is to repay a friend for concert tickets or dinner, contribute to a fundraiser, pay team dues, pay allowances or even pay the babysitter.  Payments will be deposited directly into the recipient’s account and confirmation of payment will be sent to the recipient’s e-mail address or mobile number.

Yesterday, I spoke with Steve Shaw, a member of the strategic marketing team for Fiserv. He pointed out that this is a great step in creating more convenience for money transactions:

“Right now, if you owe someone money, you usually have to write a check, or go online through a third party. Once we launch our person to person payment system early next year, though, all you have to do is send the funds. It’s convenient especially for those who already have online banking — they won’t even have to get a new password. They can set everything up from one of the 3,000 financial institutions we are already working with.”

For those who do not belong to an institution that makes use of Fiserv, Shaw says that there will eventually be a roll-out of a consumer site that works similarly to PayPal in making payments. However, unlike PayPal, recipients won’t be charged for receiving funds. “There might be fees for the sender,” Shaw acknowledges, “but that will be up to the banks to decide whether or not to charge senders a convenience fee.”

Shaw also points out that with this bank-centric model, there is no need to give out payment information to third parties, or hold money in other places. Fiserv’s system would be protected by security measures common to the financial services industry, and have the added benefit of not needing paper checks, or to have to wait three to four business days for the money to be deposited. “Funds should be available the next day in most cases,” Shaw says.

BudgetPulse recently rolled out a fundraising option that is similar, but it works through an intermediary, like PayPal or Amazon, and doesn’t offer direct P2P payments.

Image source: Daylife

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P2P Payments on the Way

But it’s not just the jobless benefits that have seen an extension. The bill is also extending the first time home buyer tax credit along the lines negotiated at the end of last week. The $8,000 credit for first time home buyers will be extended until the end of April, and there is an expansion to provide $6,500 for current home owners who are looking to buy.

On top of both of these sought after measures, the bill includes tax cuts for businesses that are struggling. This should help some businesses stay afloat until more substantial recovery can be seen in the economy.

Post from: EveryJoe

Jobless Benefits and Home Credit Renewed

However, even though the news sent stocks a little lower initially, they are inching up, desperate to remain in the black, even with the news. Even though the unemployment rate is higher, job loss is moving at a slower pace, and there are fewer lost jobs last month than the month before. However, the fact that 190,000 jobs were lost in October was still higher than the 150,000 expected.

This means that the Fed is looking justified in its comments earlier this week that the economy still needs some help, and that interest rate hikes — and an end to quantitative easing — won’t come until sometime next year. And if things don’t pick up in the labor market soon, it may be 2011 before we can start serious talking about interest rate increases.

Image source: Daylife

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U.S. Unemployment at 10.2%

Chrysler Canada

The U.S. government collaborated with GM to make the financing possible. And it seems to have worked as a record number of people decided to take advantage and purchase a new vehicle. Some dealerships even had to hire more help to take care of the influx of customers.

The Chrysler Canada “Cash For Clunkers” is just starting but they are already falling behind what was promised to customers in the U.S. For one the Canadian Government is not offering any compensation and the maximum Chrysler will pay for your old used vehicle is $1,500 whereas in the States it was closer to $3,000.

If you are living in Canada and are looking at taking advantage of this promotion your old car needs to adhere to some basic guidelines. The clunker must be a 1995 or old vehicle and you must provide proof that the car was insured in Canada during the last year.

Stay tuned to find out more about the Chrysler: Cash For Clunkers in Canada.

Image: Newscom.com

Post from: EveryJoe

Chrysler Replicating GM’s Cash For Clunkers

Spending time in the recruiting business and as a manage for other offices, reviewing applications and doing a quick name search for applicants online was just something I did. I was amazed at what I found sometimes, and more amazed at the stories I’ve read.

I know someone who was looking for a job and shortly after the interview wrote on his blog and called the person that interviewed him an “idiot” and doesn’t know if he could ever work for that company. They were so “screwed” up he wasn’t sure if he could really turn them around and fix anything.

I can tell you right now. If he’d interviewed with me, there’s not a chance he would have gotten the job and you can believe I would have let my own network know about my experience as well.

There’s a balance between being “transparent”, the buzz word of choice for social media, and maintaining a healthy inner dialogue as the article stated.

Image: sxc.hu

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The Challenge of Social Networks in Business