??Stocks RollerCoaster Downhill Again on New Coronavirus Fears ??Virus: 11-Deaths in US ?? Virus Silver Lining: Cheap Mortgage??Help Wanted!
? Spring Ahead ?
Remember to set your clocks an hour ahead Sunday, otherwise you’ll be an hour late to the office on Monday.
Daylight Saving Time begins 2am Sunday. And, as always there are arguments against it. It is good news for those who en-joy more daylight in the evening, but experts say a growing body of ev-idence shows that the an-nual time shift is bad for our health, dis-rupt-ing cir-ca-dian rhythms and sleep and lead-ing to a higher im-me-di-ate risk of heart attacks, strokes, atrial fib-ril-la-tion and po-ten-tially car ac-ci-dents. Nevertheless we warned you!
It's All About Jobs For This Election, Stupid
We get the latest Jobs numbers to cap off this week. The government will be reporting February Employment data Friday, and it's as key to the next election as Super Tuesday...after all as Bill Clinton was fond of saying--It's the Economy Stupid!
Leading up to Friday's key data we learn: companies kept adding jobs in February despite the coronavirus scare, as private payrolls expanded well above the pace that Wall Street had anticipated. Employment excluding government jobs rose by 183,000 for the month, according to a report Wednesday from Moody’s Analytics, topping the 155,000 that economists surveyed by Dow Jones had expected.
Turns out, there are plenty of jobs out there but a survey from Manpower Group finds nearly 7-in-10 employers reporting talent shortages, the worst level ever. This as the economy added a strong 225,000 jobs in January, showcasing the continued resiliency of the labor market.
>ANALYSTS LOTS HERE FOR YOU
Stocks RollerCoaster Down Hill, Again
Dow futures down close to 500 points on coronavirus fears a day after gaining1100 points following Joe Biden’s SuperTuesday wins. Tuesday’s primary results sent health-care stocks flying. The Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF traded more than 4% higher. Shares of UnitedHealth had their biggest one-day gain since 2009.
Many investors have applauded Biden for his middle-of-the-road tack in contrast to the more progressive policies of Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.
But now, investors are again worried as to why the Fed cut interested by so much, what do they know that we don’t? Stocks sank big time Tuesday, spooked by the Fed's surprise interest rate cut by half-a-percentage-point. The Fed Chief saying, "Fundamentals of the U.S. economy remain strong however, the coronavirus poses evolving risks to economic activity." The yield on the 10-Year Treasury note plunged below 1% for the first time ever, following the move.
At least 11 patients have died from coronavirus in the U.S., with California confirming the state's first death. Los Angeles-area officials have declared an emergency, saying they’ve discovered six new coronavirus cases. New York also has eleven cases. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, has sent a letter to the CEOs of American, United, Delta and other carriers urging them to immediately waive change and cancellation fees for all travelers.
So, buy bleach to kill the germs: Clorox stock set a record amid coronavirus fears.
People are emptying shelves at Costco on new signs that the coronavirus is spreading in the U.S. Cases not explained by overseas travel or contact with a people known to be infected were reported in California, Oregon and Washington State. The CDC doesn’t know exactly how the patients contracted the virus. And at shares-office space WeWork, reports of a member at a New York City location who is self quarantining (not a confirmed case) and has informed others at this location. The company is increasing cleaning/sanitation.
>Here's What You Should Do To Protect Yourself, Your Business and Your Employees - from Giserman Group Client Andrew Kilmer:
Virus Silver Lining: Mortgages at 8-Year Low
There's a silver lining coming from the coronavirus scourge --mortgage rates falling to their lowest level in 8-years and the fed rate cut could push them even lower. Refinance volume spiked, sending total mortgage application volume up 15% for the week from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index.
Mortgage Rates (Freddie Mac) 30 Year Fixed 3.45% 15 Year Fixed 2.99% 5 Year ARM 3.20%
>SitusAMC Managing Director Tim Rood Via Giserman Group on Yahoo Finance TV puts it all into perspective:
Giserman Group Will Get YOU NOTICED Too >Contact us NOW!
Now It's Biden vs Sanders
Michigan is the next battle ground state for Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders - the state's primary will be held Tuesday.
Stocks soared a day after the come-back victories by Biden, who opened Super Tuesday with victories in Southern states, building on momentum that has swiftly revived his Democratic presidential campaign. Sanders grabbed a win in home-state Vermont, Colorado and the big prize California, while Biden took Alabama, Tennessee, the battleground states of North Carolina and Virginia, plus Oklahoma and Texas.
EXPERTS WHAT’S NEXT?
Retirement: Give Until it Hurts
Give until it hurts to your retirement plan! A number of new provisions may make it easier to do so, but as always there will be a cost to some...
>The Good, Bad & Ugly from Giserman Group Client Larry Heller, President Heller Wealth management on Long Island NewsRadio:
Adoption Law Change
New Yorkers who were adopted can now learn identities of their birth parents under a new law, already in place in 10 other states.
>Giserman Group worked to get Attorney Joseph Milizio and his client on CBS2, News12, WCBS 880 and NBC4:
Giserman Group Will Get YOU NOTICED ?Contact us NOW!
New Big Cheese at Mouse House
Disney CEO Bob Iger is stepping down immediately but will remain as the company's executive chairman. He’ll be replaced by Bob Chapek, who currently oversees Disney parks, experiences and products. Iger, who had pushed back his retirement several times, will continue overseeing Disney’s creative projects through 2021.
Weinstein Behind Bars
Harvey Weinstein in custody after being convicted of rape and sexual assault against two women and was led off to prison in handcuffs.
The 67-year-old Weinstein had a look of resignation on his face as he heard the verdict that could put him away for the rest of his life. The charges carry up to 29 years behind bars. Weinstein’s lawyers said they will appeal.
Retail Apocalypse
The retail apocalypse rages on.
Bed, Bath & Beyond is set to cut 500 jobs in a bid to save $85 million each year. The company appointed former Target executive Mark Tritton to take over as chief executive in October as it seeks to overhaul its business in the face of growing competition from online retailers and discounters.
Walmart stock down big time as earnings and revenue missed analysts’ estimates. Its profit outlook for the upcoming year came up short of expectations.
Pier 1, the funky furniture retailer that later grew into a home-furnishings giant with more than 1,000 stores, has become the latest to file for bankruptcy, a victim of changing consumer tastes and an unforgiving retail environment.
Macy’s plans to close 125 department stores over the next three years, an admission that a fifth of its locations cannot thrive as shoppers buy more online and make fewer trips to malls. The company is also cutting roughly 2,000 jobs.
Hud-son’s Bay Co. share-hold-ers voted to take the re-tailer pri-vate, al-low-ing the owner of Saks Fifth Av-enue to try to mount a turn-around with-out the scru-tiny of pub-lic mar-kets.
HSBC is cutting 35,000 jobs over the next three years and close 1/3rd of U.S. bank branches.
And so it goes. >Analysts lots here for you!
Cord Cutting Heats Up
More of us are cutting the cord. Cord cutting accelerated by more than 70% last year. Large cable and satellite companies lost about 5.5 million traditional pay-TV customers. Leading cable-TV providers Comcast , Charter Communications and Altice USA together lost roughly 1 million pay-TV customers in 2019. Satellite providers shed even more accounts, led by AT&T’s DirecTV. ending 2019 with 3.4 million fewer customers
Meantime ViacomCBS is down big time after an earnings loss. The company hopes to fix things by launching a new streaming service building off CBS All Access. Good luck with that!?!
Not Too Shabby
$2.5 Million each! That’s what they are getting for a TV reunion.
It turns out after all this time the cast of Friends was just on a break. After years of speculation and pleading from fans, a Friends reunion is happening. Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer will reunite for an exclusive untitled unscripted special on WarnerMedia’s new streaming platform HBO Max. When HBO Max launches in May, the unscripted reunion special and all 236 episodes of the beloved NBC series will be available to subscribers.
$8.99/Month: All the Coffee You Can Drink
Panera Bread customers can now drink as much of the chain’s coffee and tea as they want, all for $8.99 per month.
The subscription program launching today comes after the sandwich chain overhauled its breakfast and coffee offerings with new options like wraps. Iced coffee and hot tea will also be included in the program, which is part of Panera’s loyalty program.
Coronavirus Delays Bond Film
The release of the upcoming James Bond film “No Time to Die” has been pushed to November from April. It is the first Hollywood film to shift its global rollout due to the coronavirus outbreak. Producers announcing “after careful consideration and thorough evaluation of the global theatrical marketplace,” the film would be postponed until November.
***DAYBOOK*** THURSDAY, MARCH 5 8:30 am Weekly jobless claims 8:30 am Productivity Q4 8:30 am Unit labor costs Q4 10 am Factory orders Jan. FRIDAY, MARCH 6 8:30 am ***JOBS REPORT Feb.*** 8:30 am Unemployment rate Feb. 8:30 am Average hourly earnings Feb. 8:30 am Trade deficit Jan. 10 am Wholesale inventories Jan. 3 pm Consumer credit Jan.
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Giserman Group Will Get YOU NOTICED.
