Here are three things people are talking about in the market this week.
Who runs the world? Janet Yellen
Who is Janet Yellen? The first female Chair of the Federal Reserve. Born in 1946 in Brooklyn, she went on to study at Brown University and subsequently received her PhD in economics from Yale. During an early stint as a Fed staffer, she met another young economist, George Akerlof, who would become her husband, frequent professional collaborator, and eventually a Nobel prize winner. Ms Yellen ends her tenure as Fed Chair this month.
Read more about it here.
What this means for you: More than you think. Ms. Yellen placed a lot of emphasis on reducing unemployment and helped steer the Fed’s policies so that they would be accommodative for companies and the public sector to feel comfortable increasing their payrolls (i.e. hiring people). If you had a hard time finding a job over the last 4-5 years and suddenly found yourself getting call backs, you can thank Ms. Yellen.
The market is down, should we all freak out?
Short answer, no. The more interesting thing to consider is *why* it is dropping. By all appearances, job numbers and wages are going up. In turn, companies are paying out more to their employees in exchange for hours worked at a livable wage – which in turn cuts into corporate profits and share prices.
Does that mean that when workers do well, stockholders don't?
Read more about it here.
What this means for you: Sit tight. The market has needed to self-correct for a while and this could be the beginning, and that’s fine. No one ever did well by selling stock when the price dropped. In fact, a lot of people have done very well by investing when prices are at a low point. Investments are a long-term strategy and while it’s easy to panic, it’s not productive.
Do cities make money when the Super Bowl comes to town?
It all depends on who you ask. According to the Minnesota Governor, it’s a $500 million plus to the city ledger. Past accounts put that figure more in the $30-120 million range. Which is nothing to sneeze at! But lots of cities wonder if it was all worth it in the end.
Read more about it here.
What does it mean for you: If you’re in a Super Bowl city, or one that’s in the running, a lot. From building out infrastructure the the fabled ripple effect on local businesses, it seems like a pretty sweet deal. But post-Bowl surveys reveal the truth: People love the excitement, hate the crowds, and can’t wait for the whole thing to be over.
