…and ChargePoint reports as Tesla (super)charges up
| Time for time and a half (Jetta Productions Inc./Getty Images) | |
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Last Week's Market Moves | | Dow Jones
34,838 (+1.43%) | S&P 500
4,516 (+2.50%) | Nasdaq
14,032 (+3.25%) | Bitcoin
$25,792 (-0.99%) |
| Dow Jones
34,838 (+1.43%) | S&P 500
4,516 (+2.50%) | Nasdaq
14,032 (+3.25%) | Bitcoin
$25,792 (-0.99%) |
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Hey Snackers, Alien aficionados, rejoice: the Pentagon launched an Anomaly Resolution Office website for declassified UFO info, featuring videos of resolved cases (and, eventually, tools to report sightings). It would've come in useful to the cast of "Mars Attacks." Stocks rose last week with the S&P 500 notching its best weekly gain since June. On Friday, the August jobs report showed a slowing but strong US labor market. Unemployment unexpectedly rose to 3.8%, while wage growth cooled. | Btw... Do you want to start getting Snacks daily? Or prefer to unsubscribe? Manage your subscription preferences here. | |
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Overtime pay could expand for 3.6M Americans as the White House tries to boost the middle class | Burnin' the midnight oil… but only getting paid for the 9-to-5 gas. Last week the Biden admin announced a proposal to extend overtime pay (aka: "time and a half") to an additional 3.6M salaried US workers. Overtime is available to nearly all hourly workers, but salaried workers in "executive, administrative, or professional" roles are exempt unless they earn below $35.6K. The proposal would increase the threshold to ~$55K. Under the proposed rule, the salary threshold would rise every three years to keep up with wage growth. The current threshold, set in 2019 under the Trump admin, was the first increase since 2004. At $55K, OT eligibility would fall below the US median salary of $57K. Some Democratic lawmakers wanted to extend the threshold to $83K. Hot US wage growth has started to cool, which economists say is key in tamping broader inflation. The White House's proposal would boost wages by $1.2B, but it could face strong opposition.
From right to rarity… In 1975, 60% of salaried workers qualified for overtime. Today, just 15% do. Part of the drop has to do with employers finding loopholes in federal labor law and misclassifying regular workers as managers, making them exempt from OT even if they work well beyond 40 hours/week. One study found that managerial titles nearly 6X'd during the 2010s on job postings with salaries around the OT threshold. Some job titles from the study: Director of First Impressions (a front-desk assistant) and Assistant Bingo Manager (a bingo caller). |  | THE TAKEAWAY |
| Overtime could take time… The White House is trying to lock in labor support, but getting the proposal through could be tough: an Obama admin effort to increase the OT threshold was blocked, and lobbying groups representing industries like manufacturing and retail have warned they might challenge increases. President Biden's rule would, for example, make about 300K+ more workers in each of those two industries eligible for OT. | |
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| | Cover your assets… with 100% digital life insurance through Ladder. | Protect the most valuable thing in your life: your family. Term life insurance through Ladder may help give you and your loved ones peace of mind, knowing that expenses like a mortgage and college tuition will be covered in a worst-case scenario. A dollar a day can keep financial hardship away. Ladder, awarded Best 2023 Same-Day Life Insurance by NerdWallet, offers flexible and affordable insurance. For example, a healthy 30-year-old man can get $1M in coverage for $30 per month for a 10-year term. No medical exams are required for coverage up to $3M, just health questions are asked. Life insurance typically gets more expensive as you age, so the best time to lock in your price is now.* |
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| Fighting #RangeAnxiety… ChargePoint, one of the oldest and largest EV-charging networks, is juicing up to report tomorrow after posting ~60% quarterly revenue growth in June. It has 20K+ locations (think: Best Western lots). But it's got competition from Tesla, whose superchargers make up 6 in 10 fast chargers in the US and Canada. ChargePoint recently said it'll offer Tesla's plugs in addition to the gov't-backed Combined Charging System. Ford and GM said their new EVs will use Tesla's standard, and ChargePoint doesn't want to lose customers. Oscar de la Rental… Rent the Runway reported rising revenue and slimmer losses in June as subscribers spent as much as $193/month to rent fits by Coach and J.Crew for work events and weddings. But competition's nipping at its (high) heels: Urban Outfitters expects its rival subscription service, Nuuly, will turn a profit this year and eventually become a $1B biz. Though RTR is a decade older, newcomer Nuuly already has 150K+ subs — more than RTR had when it last reported. We'll see if RTR gained momentum when it reports Friday. | |
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| $20 card minimum… or cash discount. Visa and Mastercard are turning up the fee heat on merchants. Starting in October, the payment processors will hike the fee that businesses pay every time shoppers swipe their credit cards. US merchants paid a record $160B in interchange fees last year, up more than 5X from a decade ago. The new hikes could result in another $500M+ paid out annually and translate into higher prices for shoppers (businesses often pass on the costs). A bill in Congress seeks to curb swipe fees, but TBD if it'll pass. Crypto's big W… Last week, a court ruled that the SEC was wrong to deny Grayscale's bitcoin ETF application. (Grayscale = world's biggest crypto fund.) A bitcoin ETF would let investors get exposure to bitcoin without actually owning it, which could spur more mainstream investment. Bitcoin surged on the news but fell later in the week after the SEC delayed its decision on other bitcoin ETF applications — including those from Fidelity and BlackRock. Some experts suggest it's just a matter of time before bitcoin ETFs hit the market. | |
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| Budding: The US Health Department recommended moving marijuana to a lower federal risk category. Currently, the US gov't considers it a Schedule 1 drug, in the same category as heroin and ecstasy. Deficit: A nationwide Adderall shortage could worsen as students return for back-to-school refills. The FDA and DEA urged manufacturers to boost their ADHD med production, but it won't be easy. Swiped: LA proposed a ban on cashless businesses, arguing they exclude people with low incomes, older adults, and unbanked communities. Cashless bans have already passed in San Francisco, NYC, Philly, and DC.
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What else we're Snackin' | Shred: State attorneys general are asking the SEC to make Shein show it doesn't use forced labor before its IPO. The fast-fashion giant has been accused of labor abuses and poor factory conditions. Screen: While US box-office sales still lag behind prepandemic levels, IMAX is thriving. Sales for the mega-screen theater have more than 3X'd since 2020 as moviegoers line up for blockbusters like "Oppenheimer." Pose: Strict labor laws have kept key roles in the fashion industry from unionizing. Now, Hollywood's biggest stylists are joining to try to create their first union, boosting the bustling US labor movement.
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Snack Fact Of the Day | Taylor Swift's "Eras" concert movie broke AMC's record for first-day ticket sales | | |
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This Week | Monday: US stock markets closed for Labor Day Tuesday: Earnings expected from Asana, GitLab, and Zscaler Wednesday: Fed Beige Book report. Earnings expected from American Eagle, C3.AI, ChargePoint, Dave & Buster's, Express, and GameStop Thursday: Earnings expected from DocuSign, Planet Labs, Restoration Hardware, and Zumiez Friday: Earnings expected from Kroger and Rent the Runway
Authors of this Snacks own bitcoin and shares of: GM, Rent the Runway, and Tesla *Advertiser's disclosure: Ladder Insurance Services, LLC (CA license # OK22568; AR license # 3000140372) distributes term life insurance products issued by multiple insurers – for further details see ladderlife.com. All insurance products are governed by the terms set forth in the applicable insurance policy. Each insurer has financial responsibility for its own products. Coverage amounts vary by state. This email may be considered advertising under applicable law. ©2017-2023 and TM, NerdWallet, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 230831-3088962 | |
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