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Archives for June 2017

Right to Work South Carolina is Flooded in Jobs

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Another big company, this time BMW, has announced it will be bringing more new jobs to South Carolina. The state's business friendly, right to work status has been successful in attracting major manufacturers like Boeing, and now BMW, which already has a large plant in the state, will expand. BMW plans to invest $600 million in its South Carolina plant. CNBC reports: The German automaker said Monday it will add another 1,000 jobs and invest $600 million in the plant as part of a plan to boost annual production to as many 450,000 vehicles. "It's a great day for us here in Spartanburg and … [Read more...]

Advanced Technology Manufacturing Coming Back to America

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Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. chairman Terry Gou has told reporters that Foxconn, the company's main subsidiary, will bring "our advanced technology there to revive American manufacturing." The Wall Street Journal reports: In his remarks, Mr. Gou said Foxconn is considering roughly five states for potential investments, but a company executive later clarified that to say that seven states are candidates: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin. Foxconn will work together with Sharp Corp. , the Japanese electronics maker acquired by Foxconn last year, on the U.S. … [Read more...]

Is the Boom in Global Auto Debt a Looming Crisis?

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The boom in U.S. sub-prime auto debt is a looming concern for U.S. regulators, but the problem is apparently not contained to the U.S. The FT reports that borrowing for cars in the U.K. is also booming. The auto debt on bank balance sheets is still small relative to the size of bank assets in the U.S. and U.K., so a systemic crisis probably isn’t something to be overly concerned about today. If you start to see an explosion in CDOs and synthetic CDOs, then you can start to worry. But economists and some in the industry are worried about what is going on under the bonnet of the used car … [Read more...]

Inspired by Trump, Samsung May Bring Plant to South Carolina

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Electronics maker Samsung may bring manufacturing of home appliances like refrigerators, washers, and dryers to South Carolina. The plant could bring 500 jobs to the town of Newberry. The Wall Street Journal reports: SEOUL— Samsung Electronics Co. is in late-stage discussions to invest about $300 million to expand its U.S. production facilities at a factory soon to be vacated by Caterpillar Inc., according to people familiar with the matter, with an announcement expected as early as next week. The facility eyed by Samsung is in Newberry, S.C., a town located about 150 miles northwest of … [Read more...]

Is This What Investor Madness Looks Like?

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Asset markets are frothy. That shouldn’t  come as a surprise to investors who spend even a few minutes a day doing some remedial analysis. It may however come as a shock to the growing crowd of investors who continue to blindly throw money at index based ETFs using the same tired return assumptions they used when valuations were much lower. Stocks aren’t the only asset class where things look frothy though. Here the FT highlights investor exuberance in the bond market where investors recently placed almost $10 billion in orders for a $2.75 billion 100-year bond from Argentina—a serial … [Read more...]

Advisors Should Help You Reach Investment Goals for Real, Not only in Theory

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When investors hire an advisor to help them make money fast, it often turns out that the only person making money is the advisor. Advisors not held to a fiduciary standard are likely to churn clients' portfolios, meaning they'll buy and sell, either chasing performance or generating fees and commissions for themselves by reinvesting the clients' money too often. With a new regulation taking effect from the Department of Labor, advisors traditionally held to the low "suitability standard" will be required to adhere to the more stringent "fiduciary standard" in some client retirement … [Read more...]

Blue Apron IPO Brings Meal Prep Play to the NYSE

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Blue Apron is a company that sells meal prep kits delivered to your door. Rather than shopping for food and then deciding what recipe you can make with what you've got on hand, Blue Apron and other meal prep services will sell you a recipe and the ingredients for it. The company describes its service like this: Blue Apron is a fresh ingredient and recipe delivery service that helps chefs of all levels cook incredible meals at home. We take care of the menu planning and shopping (providing you with fresh, locally sourced ingredients in pre-measured quantities), so all you have to do is cook … [Read more...]

What Amazon is Buying from Whole Foods

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Imagine walking into your local grocery store where everybody knows your name. That’s what Amazon wants out of this deal with Whole Foods. Gone are the days where an employee stocking shelves will blissfully look the other way as you search for what you need. Imagine the service you get at a five star hotel where you’re treated as a patron—a valued guest. Shopping in the big box stores today, you’re a treated like a pest. The relationship between company and client has never been more valuable. And Jeff Bezos understands this. In Bezos’ world, you will not be a pest. You will be that valued … [Read more...]

Should You Buy Apple Stock?

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The Wall Street Journal ran a feature on Apple yesterday which included the chart below. The article highlighted the transformation of Apple from a purveyor of personal computers to one of the largest mobile phone manufacturer in the world. The chart shows the percentage of revenue that comes from various apple products. As you can clearly see, in the span of ten years Apple has completely transformed itself into a company almost entirely reliant on mobile phones. Apple should be applauded for its success over the last decade, but if there is any industry where the past is rarely … [Read more...]