My morning train WFH reads:
• The layoff-less economic slump: Prior to the pandemic, the all-time low for the layoff rate was 1.1%. May was the 15th straight month the layoff rate was below that level. This might not be what you’d expect with economic data slowing. (TKer)
• There’s a solution to high gas prices. Americans will hate it. Europe has woven energy conservation into its politics and economics in a way the United States has not. Persistently high prices may change that. (Grid) see also The fight against inflation starts at sea Biden is cracking down on the ocean shipping industry. (Vox)
• How China’s relationship to Hollywood has shaped the movies Big Hollywood movies are being made with Chinese audiences in mind. (Vox)
• In Defense of Dollar Cost Averaging: It’s the philosophy through which dollar cost averaging operates. It’s the data-driven foundation under which every one of my financial beliefs is built upon. Without this foundation, I would be lost. Without this evidence-based bedrock, I would panic at the first sign of trouble. (Of Dollars And Data)
• Wait, How Did Dry Cleaning Get So Expensive? Up to 30% of the largely mom-and-pop dry cleaners in the U.S. have closed since the pandemic began; Now, the dry cleaners that remain say they have no choice but to pass higher costs on to consumers. (Wall Street Journal)
• Does the White House Need a ‘Zoning Czar’? As it tries to marshal bipartisan support for lifting barriers to housing, the Biden administration should consider a permanent office devoted to overcoming exclusionary zoning. (Citylab)
• Layoffs Are Coming. The Outsourcing Industry Will Benefit. Outsourcing “was basically born out of crisis,” said Amy Lynch, co-founder of FrontLine Compliance. (Institutional Investor) see also Dehumanization Is a Feature of Gig Work, Not a Bug What does an increase in gig, freelance, and contract work mean for the identities of people doing those jobs? The author, who drove for Postmates, interviewed other drivers, attended in-person and virtual company meetings, and reviewed and contributed to driver forums on Facebook, Reddit, and other websites, examines the narratives gig workers tell themselves about who they are and what they do. (Harvard Business Review)
• The Open House Hunters Who Targeted LA’s Rich and Famous: In a stunning crime spree, a pair allegedly stole millions of dollars in watches, bags, and other luxury items from celebrities, the fabulously wealthy, and even friends. Their trial begins on Aug. 25. (Businessweek)
• Norway Was a Pandemic Success. Then It Spent Two Years Studying Its Failures. Why one country wrote a playbook for the rest of the world. (Wall Street Journal)
• How Roe v. Wade evolved: A behind-the-scenes visual tour: A review of internal Supreme Court documents reveals that the justices’ thinking on Roe evolved dramatically over the course of eight months of deliberations. If not for several key changes of heart — and strategy — we wouldn’t have ended up with an ironclad right to abortion before a pregnancy is considered viable. (Washington Post)
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business interview this weekend with Spencer Jakab, editor of Heard on the Street column at the Wall Street Journal, and author of the Ahead of the Tape column. He began his career as an analyst at Credit Suisse, where he eventually became Director of Emerging Markets Equity Research. He is the author of “The Revolution That Wasn’t: GameStop, Reddit and the Fleecing of Small Investors.”
2022 First Half Asset Returns
Source: Henry Allen, Deutsche Bank
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