AMC trading frenzy doubles stock price as movie chain further embraces its retail investors

(Source: cnbc.com)

PUBLISHED WED, JUN 2 2021

Sarah Whitten
@SARAHWHIT10

KEY POINTS

Meme-stock traders rallied on Wednesday, sending shares of AMC Entertainment up 95%.

More than 710 million shares were exchanged on Wednesday.

The stock is up more than 2,800% year to date.

AMC Entertainment rode the wave of “meme stock” trading on Wednesday, reaching record highs.

The stock closed at an all-time high of $62.55 per share, nearly double Tuesday’s closing price. Its previous closing record had been $35.86, which was set on March 23, 2015, according to FactSet data.

At one point, AMC’s stock spiked as high as $72.62, far above its previous intraday high of $36.72, which occurred on Friday.

As retail traders have rallied around AMC, the movie theater chain has returned the favor.

AMC executives have embraced these new investors, who have fueled massive gains for the company in recent months. On Wednesday, the company made special efforts to communicate with this new base, offering up free popcorn and the promise of exclusive movie screenings to those that held its stock.

The manic activity comes despite a report that a hedge fund had sold its stake in the movie theater company. On Tuesday, AMC reported it had sold 8.5 million newly issued shares to Mudrick Capital, the latest in a series of capital raises for the stock, a favorite of Reddit traders. The hedge fund later turned around and sold all of its AMC stock for a profit, according to Bloomberg News.

Typically, such a sale would prompt a sell-off because the newly issued shares dilute the value of the existing stock.

AMC said in a securities filing Tuesday that it raised $230.5 million through the sale, and it could use the funds to make acquisitions, upgrade its theaters and deleverage its balance sheet.

On Wednesday, trading was robust. The stock was halted several times as it soared to new heights. At the end of the day more than 710 million shares were exchanged, nearly double the number of AMC’s shares outstanding. The company’s 30-day average volume is 143 million shares.

Shares of other highly shorted stocks such as Bed Bath & Beyond, GameStop and Blackberry were also caught up in the buying frenzy. Bed Bath & Beyond shares were particularly active, closing at $44.19, up 62%. That was its highest close since Jan. 27.

Last week, Bank of America said chatter was picking up again in these stocks. Since then trading has een more active.

AMC’s business was effectively halted during the pandemic, as cinemas were shuttered in most of the country for months. With no money coming in from ticket sales and concessions, AMC fell behind on its rent. On the brink of bankruptcy, short sellers swarmed the stock.

Retail investors inspired by Reddit chats have used their growing numbers to fight back. Last week, investors shorting the stock were estimated to have lost $1.23 billion as the shares rallied more than 116%, according to data from S3 Partners. The stock is up more than 2,800% year to date.

JBS cyberattack: From gas to meat, hackers are hitting the nation, and consumers, where it hurts

(Source: cnbc.com)

PUBLISHED WED, JUN 2 2021

Eric Rosenbaum 

@ERPROSE

KEY POINTS
The ransomware attack on meat processing giant JBS raises the issue of food security as a national security threat caused by criminal hacking.

It was just a month ago that the U.S. faced a ransomware attack on the Colonial Pipeline which escalated energy security concerns and led to panic buying of gas by consumers.

The recent targeted attacks on critical infrastructure controlled by private enterprise are a strategic ploy by hackers to hit companies at key points in supply chains and more effectively leverage ransom demands, and there are consequences in commodities and consumer markets.

Cybersecurity is a topic that often fails to get the attention of the public until a headline hits about a company that has their personal information, including credit card and Social Security numbers, being the victim of a hack. But over the past month, a different threat has taken precedence that goes much deeper into the psyche, and everyday lives, of Americans: ransomware attacks that take down major energy and food supply infrastructure and raise fears about being able to buy key consumer commodities like gas and meat at affordable prices.

A month ago, the hack of the Colonial Pipeline, which controls 45% of fuel in the Eastern U.S., led to panic buying of gas. This week’s ransomware attack on the world’s biggest meat processing company, JBS, escalated concerns about the potential for a spike in meat prices and food supply as a national security threat.

These cyberattacks have evolved beyond theft of data to physical assets with consumer impacts. Hackers often encrypt data on systems and demand ransom to decrypt it, but in these cases, the primary targets have shifted from the data alone to consumer-facing services. On Wednesday, the ferry service to popular New England vacation destination Martha’s Vineyard was a minor example of the infrastructure added to the list of ransomware attack targets. It’s not a new idea — it can be seen in already common cyber incidents like taking down consumer websites in denial of service attacks — but in the Colonial and JBS hacks, the criminals are digging deeper into critical national infrastructure controlled by business interests.

Hacking a nation’s protein supply
“There is a growing trend of cyber criminals going after bigger fish now and ripple effects in the supply chain,” said Derek Manky, chief of security insights and global threat alliances at Fortinet’s FortiGuard Labs. “It’s getting down to the producer level and if they can hit that target effectively it will have an impact on the consumer, not targeting the consumer directly, but it does have that consequence.”

JBS has a global supply chain that relies on connections as far apart as Australia (one of the largest sources of imported beef to the U.S. after Canada) to North America. The cyberattack led to temporary shutdowns of several plants in the U.S., though the company said many operations were coming back online Wednesday and facilities shipping product again, easing concerns about pricing.

The underlying cyber issues for the food sector, however, will remain.

The meat processing industry has become highly concentrated among a handful of players including JBS, which controls over 20% of the cattle harvesting industry in the U.S. And it is an industry which has been behind on building its cyber defenses, according to experts.

“This attack demonstrates the reach of these events, shutting down meat plants in Australia and impacting meat processing in North America,” said John Hoffman, senior research fellow at the University of Minnesota’s Food Protection and Defense Institute and a retired U.S. Army Colonel.

JBS has grown from a Brazilian cattle company to a global giant operating in over six countries and that through ownership of the Swift brand became the world’s largest beef processor. In the U.S., it sells beef and pork through major retailers including Costco.

“It brings home these attacks, when they occur now, are no longer local,” Hoffman said. “This is a primary protein supplier and major supplier, and simultaneous effects in North America and Australia.”

A complex, consolidated meat processing chain
The complexity built into the current global food supply chain can benefit consumers in keeping costs down and providing yearlong access to items grown around the world depending on seasonality. But that complexity also results in risks that rise to the level of critical infrastructure.

For a hacker whose objective in a ransomware attack is to force payment, a food manufacturing and processing company like JBS, a centralized node in a consolidated industry, makes for a good target. If successfully attacked, the hack can result in widespread problems from the cattle on the pasture to the feedlots and into the grocery store. JBS USA says it has the capacity to process more than 200,000 cattle, 500,000 hogs, 45 million chickens and 80,000 small stock (lambs, sheep, goats and veal calves) per week.

Covid exposed how the concentration in the meat processing sector could quickly create unexpected issues related to food security and pricing. The ability to delivery livestock to plants was cut off amid shutdowns for health safety reasons, and those supply chains were thrown out of alignment for weeks, hitting both the farms and the consumers.

A 2019 fire at a single Tyson Foods processing plant in Kansas caused cattle prices to fall and retail beef prices to jump. A hint of those market dislocations was seen again on Tuesday. Cattle futures fell on fears that meat processing shutdowns would suspend the ability to move cows from the pasture and feedlot to the slaughterhouse, while at the same time fears rose about potential price hikes in stores and restaurants.

“This is another demonstration of how vulnerable the beef supply chain is,” said Bill Bullard, the CEO of R-Calf USA, a group representing cattle ranching interests which has been pressing the government for years to do more about consolidation in the beef industry. JBS and its peers are under existing antitrust scrutiny from the federal government.

JBS, Tyson, Cargill and National Beef are the four dominant players in the meatpacking industry.

“Centralized systems are vulnerable to all kinds of shocks,” Bullard said. “Cattle is the single-largest sector of agriculture and a major protein source for Americans.”

Food and agriculture as critical infrastructure
The food and agriculture sector has not received the attention from the government when it comes to national security threats that other sectors have historically. It was not deemed a critical infrastructure sector by the federal government until 2003, and many industry players are still playing catch-up on technology. The Food Safety Modernization Act of 2010, meanwhile, placed limited emphasis on cybersecurity.

“I think this sends a strong message to both government and industry that they need to work on hardening these systems” Hoffman said. “The food industry will really have to step up their cyber game, take a critical look at each major component of infrastructure and supply chain segments.”

Meat processing companies have legacy operating technology systems that may have been installed decades ago and are not replaced every few years like IT systems. These OT systems running plant floors are now being connected to each other and with IT systems through new Internet of Things architecture, creating vulnerabilities for hackers to exploit. In a meat processing plant this setup can include devices like multiple digital sensors monitoring temperature and pressure and ingredients, all connected to a global network for packaging and distribution — and executive management and managers in plants using the real-time data dashboards globally — creating multiple attack points.

“There is a path of least resistance to go after IT and OT systems on the plant floor that have critical dependencies on those IT systems,” Manky said.

For financial reasons, as well as data consistency, it can make sense to have a centralized network rather a highly distributed architecture across an organization. “There is a lot of shared infrastructure on all systems tied tightly together,” said John Sheehy, director of strategic security services at IOActive, which has been studying the threat of food supply chain hacking for years.

JBS has not offered much information about the nature of the hack, but did indicate it had backups available, which is considered a fundamental part of competent cyber strategy. But experts said there were questions about its “segmentation” of technology that will need to be answered in an attack that took down operations in both the U.S. and Australia. It is possible the company took down some operations as a preventative measure.

JBS did not respond to a request for comment.

Nation-state actors and criminal hackers
Concerns exist that nation-state actors will test the pressure points of critical infrastructure through hacks so that during future periods of geopolitical conflict they can sow more chaos by disrupting supply chains. Food supply of an adversary is an example. The JBS attack, based on all the available information, does not rise to that level. It was criminal, if strategic in nature, but according to the U.S. government, it is one more example of Russia providing safe haven to hackers hitting key supply chains, an issue expected to be on the agenda when President Biden meets with Russian president Vladimir Putin later this month in Geneva for a summit.

“This is the second major ransomware attack where the government has identified the attackers are geographically based in Russia and this is a significant political issue,” Sheehy said. “It is not clear there is any Russian government support for these criminal organizations, but there is concern they are allowing them to operate fully.”

The idea that a ransomware attack could ripple through the supply chain and end up hitting consumers is not unprecedented. The 2019 ransomware attack on metals giant Norsk Hydro is in some respects similar as far as a broad supply chain threat stretching from the commodities market to the consumer. But the JBS hack could be a turning point for the food sector.

The mind of a cybercriminal is less focused on strategic national security implications than dollar signs, but the potential payout is larger if they can take down a supply chain and demand higher ransom as a result of the attack’s scope. That implies a sector like food with a consolidated global supply chain and distribution will remain under threat.

“It was aluminum yesterday and beef today, and pork tomorrow. Expect more of these attacks to be happening,” Manky said.

Meat processing is a low-margin business subject to greater budget limitations than early adopters of new technology, such as cloud companies and financials, and lower spending on cyber will continue to make it a likely target of more frequent attacks.

“That is an issue food supply companies will have to face,” Sheehy said. “Food security will be more front and center just like the pipeline issue.”

With JBS saying most operations are coming back online, the worst-case scenario of extended plant shutdowns and price shocks through the food system may be avoided. But experts say even a few days of a distribution outage in the food sector can have major consequences and much of the meat processing industry remains vulnerable to attacks, is more likely to be targeted after JBS, and even if companies in the sector take this opportunity to increase cyber budgets, it is a multi-year effort during which present vulnerabilities will persist.

“The more this happens, the more they [criminal hackers] learn from their own successes and that unfortunately has the classic dollar signs flashing in their eyes. They know they can hit where it hurts,” Manky said.

Ransomware business achieves critical mass

(Source: axios.com)

Jun 2, 2021 
 

Scott Rosenberg

The Memorial Day weekend ransomware attack that left the world's largest meat processor hobbled also had CEOs around the globe asking, "Am I next?"

Why it matters: The attack on Brazil-based JBS came just weeks after a similar attack on Colonial Pipeline, the U.S.'s largest refined-fuel pipeline operator. Attacks that disrupt food and energy supplies are the kinds that rouse governments to strike back.

Details: JBS said Sunday the attack hit its servers in the U.S. and Australia. Many of the firm's U.S. plants were shut down Tuesday, but by evening the company's CEO promised that "the vast majority" of its plants would be operating Wednesday.

The big picture: Ransomware is a longstanding problem, but it has recently become a "global pandemic" (as former U.S. cyber leader Chris Krebs puts it) thanks to the rise of a profitable industry around it.

2020 saw roughly $350 million in cryptocurrency payments to ransomware attacks, triple the previous year's take, per one study.
Startup costs are cheap because malware providers have built low-cost "software as a service"-style ransomware tools that don't demand wizard-level skills to use.
Companies and organizations whose data and/or networks are locked up typically choose to pay a ransom rather than go through the extended trauma of accepting data loss and rebuilding systems from scratch.
Bitcoin makes it possible for the criminals to collect that ransom efficiently and anonymously.
How it works: Today's ransomware world operates like a macabre parody of the modern tech industry.

The original backers, the "venture capitalists" in the equation, are governments looking to "disrupt" their enemies.
These investors pay third-party hacking groups who function as "entrepreneurs" and "startups."
Their products are technical platforms that enable "users" to launch ransomware attacks, producing a revenue stream.
Ransomware has enabled a scalable business model for one species of cyberattack, but it requires careful calibration.

Attackers must select targets big enough to pay up but not so big that governments intervene to shut the ransomware operation down. The Colonial attack crossed that line, and the Darkside group that made it possible has since apparently disbanded.
Attackers also have to choose ransom amounts carefully: They want a big payoff, sure, but they also don't want to demand so much that victims just throw up their hands and choose to take the data loss.
The most effective "vaccine" for the ransomware pandemic would be tighter security at target companies, who are commonly infiltrated by e-mail phishing attacks or other vulnerabilities. But that's slow and hard to make happen.

Another potential remedy could involve cutting ransomware business' profits by blocking cryptocurrency pathways.

Bitcoin itself is tough to monitor. But governments, if provoked, could pretty quickly crack down on companies that move assets between the crypto underworld and the by-the-book economy.
Or the Biden administration could turn the screws on Russia to stop funding and backing the ransomware plague — as most intelligence and industry experts believe it does.

President Biden is set for a summit with Russian president Vladimir Putin June 16 in Geneva.
Yes, but: U.S. efforts to discourage Russian-backed disinformation campaigns haven't succeeded in ending them. And U.S. retaliation for the massive SolarWinds breach last winter hasn't deterred the group behind it from continuing attacks more recently.

It may prove similarly tough to shut down a criminal software industry that's also making its perpetrators millionaires.

Rural Japanese homes are selling for $500 or less

(Sources: foxbusiness.com, nypost.com)

Japan is riddled with millions of vacant homes, called akiya, that local governments hope will sell for next to nothing.

Published June 1

By Hannah Sparks | New York Post

Get these $500 fixer-uppers — so long as you can read a Japanese construction manual.

Japan is riddled with millions of vacant homes, called akiya, that local governments hope will sell for next to nothing.

PRIVATE ISLAND WITH UNDERGROUND TUNNEL ENTRANCE HITS THE MARKET AFTER NEARLY TWO DECADES OF CONSTRUCTION

At last count, Japan’s Housing and Land survey found 8.49 million uninhabited dwellings in 2018 — a 3.2% increase in akiya since the previous survey interval in 2013.

All told, more than 13% of the country’s 62 million homes are unoccupied, especially in rural prefectures such as Wakayama, Tokushima, Kagoshima and Kochi. In these regions, the average rate of vacant homes is up to 18%.

Now, a new program led by Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga means to stimulate Japan’s rural economy by encouraging tourism, business and a wave of new residents.

Online akiya "banks" have been set up by cities such as Tochigi and Nagano, where potential buyers can shop for abandoned homes listed for as little as 50,000 yen ($500). In Okutama, the price drops to $0.

"The program not only helps the old owners, who were struggling to utilize the properties and pay taxes, but also for the town by reducing the number of abandoned buildings that could collapse or otherwise pose risks in the future," a spokesman for the Okutama government office told Nikkei, according to an Insider report.

In September, local governments offered to pay 1 million yen ($9,000) to any Tokyo-based workers who agree to work remote from the countryside.

To address a gap in tech services in the region, a bonus of 3 million yen ($27,000) is also being offered to anyone willing to set up an IT business in rural Japan.

Such subsidies have already proven effective in Mikasa, in Hokkaido prefecture, where there’s been an 11% decrease in vacant homes since the city began offering cash for child care and home furnishing. Daisen, in Tottori prefecture, saw a 7.9% drop in vacancies after the local government promised 2 million yen ($18,000) toward home renovations for new buyers.

Similar trends have been seen around the globe, including the US, and in Italy, where dilapidated homes in medieval cities are known to go for as little as 1 euro ($1.22).

The 30-Year Mortgage Rate Nears 3.4%

The 30-Year Mortgage Rate Nears 3.4% | June 2, 2021

(Source: money.com)

Interest rates have been trending higher since last Friday. The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate loan increased to 3.388% today. Rates for all fixed-rate loans are higher than yesterday, while rates for adjustable-rate loans are mixed.

Though rates are moving higher at the moment, there’s still an opportunity to lock in relatively low rates and monthly payments for people intent on purchasing a home or refinancing their mortgage.

The latest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 3.388%.
The latest rate on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage is 2.457%.
The latest rate on a 5/1 jumbo ARM is 3.559%.
The latest rate on a 7/1 conforming ARM is 4.143%.
The latest rate on a 10/1 conforming ARM is 3.725%.
Today’s 30-year fixed mortgage rates
The 30-year rate is 3.388%.
That’s a one-day increase of 0.021 percentage points.
That’s a one-month increase of 0.08 percentage points.
With a fixed-rate loan the interest rate and monthly payments don’t change for as long as you keep the loan. On a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, the payback time is 360 months unless you make extra payments, refinance or sell the home. The 30-year mortgage is the most popular home loan in American thanks to the long payback period and relatively low monthly payments.

The interest rate on a 30-year loan will generally be higher than the rate for shorter fixed-rate loans like a 15-year. However, the longer payback time means the monthly payments will be lower. You’ll also end up paying more in overall interest with a 30-year loan because you’ll be paying a higher rate for more time.

Today’s 15-year fixed mortgage rates

The 15-year rate is 2.457%.
That’s a one-day increase of 0.013 percentage points.
That’s a one-month increase of 0.006 percentage points.
With a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage your interest rate and monthly payments won’t change either. You’ll pay the loan back in 180 months unless you make extra payments, refinance or sell.

The interest rate on a 15-year loan will be lower than the rate on a 30-year loan. However, because the payback time is cut in half, the monthly payments will be higher. The advantage of a 15-year loan is that you’ll actually pay less in total interest over the full length of the loan compared to a 30-year loan.

Today’s 5/1 jumbo adjustable-rate mortgage rates

The 5/1 ARM rate is 3.559%.
That’s a one-day decrease of 0.035 percentage points.
That’s a one-month decrease of 0.248percentage points.
An adjustable-rate mortgage is an alternative to fixed-rate loans. With an ARM, your interest rate and monthly payment will start fixed but become variable for most of the loan term.

A 5/1 adjustable-rate loan, for example, will have a fixed rate for the first five years of the loan. Afterward, the rate will reset on a yearly basis. There are many different fixed-rate periods among ARMs, but two of the more common ones include a 7/1 and a 10/1.

Today’s VA, FHA and jumbo loan rates

The average rates for FHA, VA and jumbo loans are:

The rate on a 30-year FHA mortgage is 3.152%.
The rate on a 30-year VA mortgage is 3.223%.
The rate on a 30-year jumbo mortgage is 3.729%.

Mortgage refinance rates today

The average rates for 30-year loans, 15- year loans and 5/1 jumbo ARMs are:

The refinance rate on a 30-year fixed-rate refinance is 3.779%.
The refinance rate on a 15-year fixed-rate refinance is 2.643%.
The refinance rate on a 5/1 jumbo ARM is 3.857%.
The refinance rate on a 7/1 conforming ARM is 4.367%.
The refinance rate on a 10/1 conforming ARM is 4.369%.

Where are mortgage rates heading this year?

Mortgage rates sunk through 2020. Millions of homeowners responded to low mortgage rates by refinancing existing loans and taking out new ones. Many people bought homes they may not have been able to afford if rates were higher.

In January 2021, rates briefly dropped to the lowest levels on record, but trended higher through the month and into February.

Looking ahead, experts believe interest rates will rise more in 2021, but modestly. Factors that could influence rates include how quickly the COVID-19 vaccines are distributed and when lawmakers can agree on another economic relief package. More vaccinations and stimulus from the government could lead to improved economic conditions, which would boost rates.

While mortgage rates are likely to rise this year, experts say the increase won’t happen overnight and it won’t be a dramatic jump. Rates should stay near historically low levels through the first half of the year, rising slightly later in the year. Even with rising rates, it will still be a favorable time to finance a new home or refinance.

Factors that influence mortgage rates include:

The Federal Reserve. 

The Fed took swift action when the pandemic hit the United States in March of 2020. The Fed announced plans to keep money moving through the economy by dropping the short-term Federal Fund interest rate to between 0% and 0.25%, which is as low as they go. The central bank also pledged to buy mortgage-backed securities and treasuries, propping up the housing finance market. The Fed has reaffirmed its commitment to these policies for the foreseeable future multiple times, most recently at a late January policy meeting.

The 10-year Treasury note. 

Mortgage rates move in lockstep with the yields on the government’s 10-year Treasury note. Yields dropped below 1% for the first time in March 2020 and have been slowly rising since then. Currently, yields have been hovering above 1% since the beginning of the year, pushing interest rates slightly higher. On average, there is typically a 1.8 point “spread” between Treasury yields and benchmark mortgage rates.

The broader economy. 

Unemployment rates and changes in gross domestic product are important indicators of the overall health of the economy. When employment and GDP growth are low, it means the economy is weak, which can push interest rates down. Thanks to the pandemic, unemployment levels reached all-time highs early last year and have not yet recovered. GDP also took a hit, and while it has bounced back somewhat, there is still a lot of room for improvement.

Tips for getting the lowest mortgage rate possible

There is no universal mortgage rate that all borrowers receive. Qualifying for the lowest mortgage rates takes a little bit of work and will depend on both personal financial factors and market conditions.

Check your credit score and credit report. 

Errors or other red flags that may be dragging your credit score down. Borrowers with the highest credit scores are the ones who will get the best rates, so checking your credit report before you start the house-hunting process is key. Taking steps to fix errors will help you raise your score. If you have high credit card balances, paying them down can also provide a quick boost.

Save up money for a sizeable down payment. 

This will lower your loan-to-value ratio, which means how much of the home’s price the lender has to finance. A lower LTV usually translates to a lower mortgage rate. Lenders also like to see money that has been saved in an account for at least 60 days. It tells the lender you have the money to finance the home purchase.

Shop around for the best rate. 

Don’t settle for the first interest rate that a lender offers you. Check with at least three different lenders to see who offers the lowest interest. Also consider different types of lenders, such as credit unions and online lenders in addition to traditional banks.

Also take time to find out about different loan types. 

While the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is the most common type of mortgage, consider a shorter-term loan like a 15-year loan or an adjustable-rate mortgage. These types of loans often come with a lower rate than a conventional 30-year mortgage. Compare the costs of all to see which one best fits your needs and financial situation. Government loans — such as those backed by the Federal Housing Authority, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Agriculture — can be more affordable options for those who qualify.

Finally, lock in your rate. 

Locking your rate once you’ve found the right rate, loan product and lender will help guarantee your mortgage rate won’t increase before you close on the loan.

Our mortgage rate methodology

Money’s daily mortgage rates show the average rate offered by over 8,000 lenders across the United States the most recent business day rates are available for. Today, we are showing rates for Tuesday, June 1, 2021. Our rates reflect what a typical borrower with a 700 credit score might expect to pay for a home loan right now. These rates were offered to people putting 20% down and include discount points.

Austin, Texas, ranks top for tech worker migration, LinkedIn data shows

(Source: foxbusiness.com)

Published 6/2/2021

By Lucas Manfredi | FOXBusiness

Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; and Charlotte, North Carolina, rank as the top three cities to see the largest inflow of tech-related job migration over the past 12 months, according to new data provided by LinkedIn. The rankings are based on the top 35 metropolitan areas with gross tech migration of at least 2,000 LinkedIn users within the last year.

27% OF REMOTE PANDEMIC HIRES DON'T FEEL EMBRACED BY THEIR TEAM

According to the data reviewed by FOX Business, about 217 software and information technology company workers per 10,000 moved to Austin between May 2020 to April 2021. Nashville and Charlotte saw about 154 and 145 tech workers per 10,000, respectively, during the same period. Rounding out the top five are Jacksonville, Florida, which saw inflows of approximately 136 tech workers per 10,000, and Denver, Colorado, which saw roughly 130 tech workers per 10,000.

Meanwhile, San Francisco saw the largest outflows with about 80 tech workers per 10,000 leaving, followed by Boston with roughly 54 tech workers per 10,000, Chicago with approximately 53 per 10,000, Cincinnati with about 47 per 10,000 and New York City with roughly 42 per 10,000.

The new data comes as companies are announcing their return-to-the-office plans as COVID-19 restrictions ease.

While tech giants like Twitter, Microsoft, Google and Salesforce have said they would either allow employees to work from home full-time or offer flexibility using a hybrid work model, Facebook and big banks like JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs are aiming to bring the majority of their employees back to the office before the end of the year, signaling some of the moves noted by LinkedIn may not necessarily be permanent.

On Friday, the U.S. Labor Department will release its jobs report for the month of May. Economists expect employers added 674,000 positions in May with the unemployment rate falling to 5.9%. In April, the U.S. economy added just 266,000 jobs, well below the more than 900,000 expected, while the unemployment rate increased to 6.1%.

Over 8,600 Americans moved out of Hawaii last year: Here’s how much it costs to live there

(Source: grow.acorns.com)

Jun 1. 2021

Shawn M. Carter @SHAWNCARTERM

“It’s becoming too expensive for many [people] to stay.”

With its diverse culture and beautiful beaches, Hawaii definitely has charm. But despite its sunny appeal, a lot of the Aloha State’s residents decided to say goodbye last year.

The state lost about 8,609 people from July 2019 to July 2020, according to recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau. That’s the third-highest rate of population decline per capita across the United States, the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii points out, and quintuple the number that the Economic Research Organization at the University of Hawaii (UHERO) had previously projected.

“Even though people might love living [in Hawaii], having 8,000 residents leave means it’s becoming too expensive for many to stay,” says Ben Reynolds, chief executive officer of Sure Dividend.

Hawaii’s housing costs: Apartments and homes
A major reason people leave Hawaii is because of the high cost of housing. It’s one of the priciest places in the country to settle down, regardless of whether you rent an apartment or buy a home.

Renting in Hawaii is much cheaper than buying. The national average rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $1,610 per month, according to Apartment Guide’s April 2021 rent report. In Honolulu, Hawaii’s capital and most populous city, the average rent for an apartment of any size is $1,725, says RentCafé.

Kailua-Kona, on the Big Island, is about the same, with an average one-bedroom rent of $1,700, according to Zumper. Cheaper digs can be found in Kahului, Maui’s most populous city, where Zumper says the average one-bedroom rents for about $1,300.

Homeownership in Hawaii is very expensive: The typical home value statewide is about $708,300, according to Zillow, way above the national figure of $281,400.

“You can still find homes averaging at $350,000,” says Reynolds, but “it might mean not living in popular areas.”

How much money do I need to start investing?
Many experts recommend the 50-30-20 rule. Learn more here.
Taxes and the cost of living in Hawaii
Hawaiians are fortunate when it comes to property taxes. They pay an effective property tax rate of just 0.28%, the lowest in the country, per WalletHub. Over 20 states pay 1% or more. New Jersey has the highest rate at 2.49%.

When taking income and sales tax into view, though, Hawaii residents pay a lot. WalletHub reports that the island’s 12.19% total tax burden is the second-highest in the country, behind New York. Alaska, by contrast, has the lowest rate, at 5.1%.

Everyday life can be quite expensive in the Aloha State, whose geographic isolation makes it heavily reliant on imported food and fuel. In Honolulu, the cost of living is 88% higher than the national average, notes PayScale. Utilities cost 89% more than average, groceries 62%, and transportation 35%.

“Always think of the costs of transportation, utilities, and state taxes before moving,” Reynolds notes. “Don’t just give in to [the] impulse and move without considering ways” to pay for it.

Why Hawaii’s population is decreasing
A population decrease is more than people leaving: It also includes “natural change,” which accounts for births and deaths and migration from foreign countries, says the Economic Research Organization at the University of Hawaii. But neither of these factors have contributed to what’s now the fourth straight year of negative growth for the state.

Between July 2018 and July 2019, Hawaii’s population decreased by 4,721. While the cycle of birth and death added a net 4,130 new inhabitants and foreign migration added 5,014, a staggering 13,817 more residents moved to the U.S. mainland than the other way around. (Note that the figures do not add up exactly, says UHERO, “due to a residual that cannot be attributed to any specific demographic category.”)

Even though people might love living there, having 8,000 residents leave means it’s becoming too expensive for many to stay.
Ben Reynolds
SURE DIVIDEND
Hawaii’s tourism-reliant economy was rocked by the pandemic: The unemployment rate soared from 3.9% in 2019 to 12.8% in 2020, according to U.S. News and World Report. That exacerbated the state’s existing cost-of-living issues.

“This isn’t a new problem for our state,” Keli’i Akina, president and chief executive officer of the Grassroot Institute, said in a statement. “For some time now, our neighbors, family, and friends have been moving away to states such as Idaho, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Texas, which have lower taxes and fewer regulations, and offer residents more freedoms and opportunities. It’s a matter of the state’s high cost of living, and better job opportunities in other states.”

Hawaii can be a great place to live — but budget carefully
As full-time remote work becomes more of an option, Hawaii is hoping to lure professionals who want to combine Zoom meetings with sun and sand. During the pandemic, the state partnered with local leaders to launch Movers and Shakas, a temporary residency program that paid for 50 working professionals to fly to the state and work remotely. The program also offered discounts on accommodations, food, and co-working spaces, in exchange for some local volunteer work by its participants.

“This is the opportunity for someone interested in learning what makes Hawaii special, and enabling them to participate in that firsthand,” data analytics CEO and Movers & Shakas leader Richard Matsui told CNBC last year.

As the Movers and Shakas effort underlines, if you’re moving to Hawaii, it’s best to have work already lined up. The state isn’t getting any cheaper: Home values have gone up 7% in the past year and could increase more, according to Zillow.

If your heart is set on a move to Hawaii, experts discourage tapping into your retirement money or your emergency fund to relocate, since that could hurt you down the line if you lose an existing job, can’t find a new job locally, or need to make expensive repairs to a home. Instead, focus on saving steadily.

“Cut down your discretionary expenses to save money for [a] down payment and emergency funds,” says Reynolds. “Moving might mean living more minimally, so limiting your discretionary spending beforehand might help the transition to a higher cost of living.”

China Electric Car Makers Outshine Peers on Growing Optimism

(Source: finance.yahoo.com)

Esha Dey | Tue, June 1, 2021

(Bloomberg) -- Electric-vehicle makers and suppliers rallied on Tuesday after a string of positive news for the industry, with Chinese companies clocking in the biggest gains.

U.S.-traded shares of Nio Inc. and XPeng Inc. surged after the two Chinese EV makers reported strong sales for May and Citigroup Inc. boosted its estimates for the industry. The optimism also lifted peers Workhorse Group Inc., Nikola Corp., Lordstown Motors Corp. and Fisker Inc., with SNE Research saying global EV battery sales have more than doubled in the first four months of the year.

Electric-car makers have had a hard time this year to hold on to the intense market enthusiasm of 2020 amid an increasing threat of competition from legacy automakers, the global semiconductor shortage and a rising reluctance among investors for holding onto riskier assets.

EV battery startup QuantumScape Corp., charging station operator ChargePoint Holdings Inc. and lithium companies Livent Corp., Lithium Americas Corp. and Albemarle Corp. all rallied on Tuesday.

Nio’s American Depositary Receipts closed up 9.6%, and XPeng’s up 7.7%. Tesla Inc. was the stark outlier, closing the day down 0.2%.

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

Tesla Recalls Nearly 6,000 Model 3 and Y Vehicles

(Source: thestreet.com)

M. COREY GOLDMAN | UPDATED: JUN 2, 2021 

Tesla is recalling nearly 6,000 U.S. Model 3 and Model Y EVs because of potentially loose brake caliper bolts that could cause a loss of tire pressure.

Tesla (TSLA) - Get Report will recall nearly 6,000 U.S. vehicles because brake caliper bolts could be loose, potentially causing a loss of tire pressure.

According to a filing with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration made public on Wednesday, Tesla is recalling certain 2019-2021 Model 3 vehicles and 2020-2021 Model Y vehicles.

Tesla’s filing with the NHTSA said it had no reports of crashes or injuries related to the issue and that the company will inspect and tighten, or replace, the caliper bolts as necessary.

The recall is not the first for Tesla this year. The electric vehicle maker in February recalled 135,000 Model S luxury sedans and Model X sport-utility vehicles because of touch-screen failures.

In addition, German motor authorities in February asked Tesla to recall around 12,300 Model X cars due to what it described as "limited functionality" of the adhesive on a "trim strip."

The recall comes as Tesla and its co-founder and Technoking Elon Musk continue to make headlines in the virtual world - and not in a necessarily positive way.

The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that regulators at the Securities and Exchange Commission have claimed Elon Musk violated a settlement that required his tweets about Tesla be preapproved by company lawyers.

Meantime, shares of Samsung Publishing, the second largest shareholder in the producer of the “Baby Shark” viral YouTube song, surged nearly 20% to the highest level in more than a month on Wednesday after Musk tweeted about the kiddie pop jingle.

Musk tweeted during Asian trading hours Wednesday “Baby Shark crushes all! More views than humans,” with a video clip of the song attached. His tweet triggered another rally in the shares, again underscoring the influence the billionaire co-founder of Tesla commands on asset prices.

Baby Shark (Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo)” became a YouTube sensation in 2018. It has been viewed nearly 8.7 billion times and has made it to the Billboard Hot 100 chart on multiple weeks.

At last check, Tesla shares were down 2.17% at $610.39.