ECONOMY

Growing Outbreak Slams Brakes on Jobs Boom

The U.S. economy added 245,000 jobs last month, a reading below expectations and less than half of the 610,000 job gains in October. The unemployment rate inched down to 6.7% from 6.9%. The entire report was, as Chicago Fed President Charles Evans put it, “a little disappointing.” 

• The restaurant industry lost jobs for the first time since April. The sector’s unemployment rate stands much higher than the national average, at 13.8%. 
• 9.8 million fewer Americans remain employed than before the pandemic. And the hard-hit hospitality industry alone accounts for 3.4 million of them. 

President-elect Joe Biden called it a “grim jobs report. It shows an economy that is stalling.”

So, like any astute economic observers, we expected stocks to fall and Treasury prices to rise (Treasuries are considered a safe haven for investors when the economic outlook goes south).  

But that didn’t happen

After the data was released, Treasury prices fell, pushing yields higher, and stocks rose to all-time highs. In fact, it was the first time the S&P 500, the Dow, the Nasdaq, and the Russell 2000 closed at records since Jan. 2018.   

Why? Investors are playing 3D chess. They’re betting that news of a slowing economic recovery will give Congress an even bigger kick in the bum to strike a deal on a coronavirus stimulus package. 

• Relief talks began with greater urgency this week given the alarming rise in new Covid-19 cases and the potential for about 12 million Americans to lose their unemployment benefits after Christmas. 

Looking ahead...Democratic leadership supports a bipartisan $908 billion package, which would be attached to a larger omnibus spending bill to avert a government shutdown after Dec. 11. The weekend is shaping up to be an eventful one in D.C.

CANNABIS

U.S. Greenhouse of Representatives

Yesterday, the U.S. House passed a landmark bill that would decriminalize marijuana at the federal level. The bill, called the MORE Act, would remove pot from the Controlled Substances Act and also expunge some marijuana-related convictions.

• Important context: The House is controlled by Democrats, who are more pro-legalization than their Republican colleagues. The GOP-controlled Senate is not expected to entertain the bill, calling it a distraction from the coronavirus. 

For Dems, this bill is about more than legalizing pot—it’s about civil rights. Proponents of the MORE Act say the legislation would address longstanding U.S. drug policies that disproportionately harm racial minorities.

The biz impact: The law authorizes a 5% sales tax on marijuana products and provides microloan opportunities for small marijuana businesses. And the vote came just after Thanksgiving weekend, when legal U.S. cannabis sales hit record levels. 

+ Interesting side note: Also yesterday, the House approved the Big Cat Public Safety Act, a Tiger King-inspired bill that would ban private ownership of big cats. It’s not likely to be approved by the Senate either.  

SOFTWARE

Live Look at Snowflake Investors

Snowflake, the cloud-based data storage software giant, continues to be the most exciting, boring company out there. Yesterday, its market cap topped more than $100 billion after reporting its first earnings as a public company on Thursday. 

About those earnings

They were a bit of a mixed bag, despite the jubilant reaction from investors. The good news?  Revenue was up 119% year-over-year in Q3. The less good news: Snowflake expects revenue to ~only~ grow 88% next quarter, less than the 102% analysts were projecting. If Snowflake’s more conservative estimate turns out to be correct, it would be the first quarter in which the young company hasn’t doubled its revenue on a yearly basis. 

• One person who isn’t too worried? Snowflake’s CEO Frank Slootman. Mr. Slootman’s compensation package rewards him with stock options worth ~$95 million a month. And Snowflake’s stock gained 14% yesterday alone.

Bottom line: While Snowflake’s value has more than tripled since its public debut this fall, Wall Street is recommending investors break out the snow tires—more than half of the 22 analysts covering the company say it’s a “Hold” at this time. 

SPONSORED BY CARIUMA

We Simply Can't Stop Talking About Our Favorite Shoes

Onto the most important business news of the day: It’s booming for CARIUMA's bamboo shoes.

16,000 people joined the waitlist for CARIUMA’s IBI sneaks. Now, the Brew Crew’s favorite foot puppies are back in stock in Black, Stone Black, Stone Grey, and Mineral Blue.

Made from bamboo, sugarcane, organic momoa oil, and cork, the sustainable IBIs will have your feet screamin’ yippee.

And because the demand for IBIs is so high, CARIUMA decided to match that demand with high style: new IBI hightops, and they’re sure to cover your ankles and your need for great-lookin’, great-feelin’ kicks. Simply unmatched comfort, readers.

The IBIs are 15% off for only a few more ticks of the ole watch. Get ’em before the Brew Crew clears out CARIUMA’s inventory again.

VIDEOGAMES

What Were You Doing at Nine-Years-Old?

Struggling to keep your Tamagotchi alive? Not to make you feel bad, but nine-year-old Ryan Kaji has a multimillion dollar empire built off his massively popular YouTube channel, “Ryan’s World.” And today, he’s launching an entire virtual theme park inside the gaming platform Roblox.

The park will feature a racetrack, school, city center, and an obstacle course-filled “fun zone,” where players can walk among characters from Ryan’s show and, occasionally, with Ryan himself.

• Instead of buying light-up roses and kettle corn, Ryan’s World visitors will trade IRL money (and/or complete gameplay milestones) in exchange for an in-game currency called “gems.” They can use gems to purchase virtual items—similar to how free-to-play Fortnite generates revenue. 

There’s also an IRL merch angle: For instance, race cars at the race track are available to buy as physical toys from FAO Schwarz.

Zoom out: Virtual theme parks are just one piece of managing company Pocketwatch’s plan to turn digitally native franchises like Ryan’s into Sesame Street-sized enterprises. As for Roblox, it’s gearing up for a mega-IPO this month. 

IPO

Your Dog Might Sign Up for Robinhood

Yesterday, pet retailer Petco filed to go public under the ticker—and shield your eyes, cat lovers—WOOF. 

Why now?

People dealt with the stress of 2020 in different ways, but a sizable group coped by adopting a very good boy or girl. According to Petco, the number of households that own pets is expected to rise 4% this year, adding an extra $4 billion in demand for pet products. 

• Petco, which has 1,470 physical retail locations, also invested $300 million into its e-commerce and digital operations to capitalize on that growing trend.

Zoom out: If your pet actually had their own brokerage account, they’d likely be outperforming your portfolio. Chewy, Petsmart’s online arm, is up more than 150% since it went public last year, while refrigerated pet food supplier Freshpet has surged 133% in 2020. 

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

• Activision Blizzard sued Netflix for poaching former Activision CFO Spencer Neumann and other execs. 
• Glencore’s CEO of 18 years, Ivan Glasenberg, will retire from the mining giant next year. The company also said it’ll aim to go net-zero emissions by 2050. 
• About half of special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) reviewed by Bloomberg have no women on their boards.
• Tony Hsieh, the former Zappos CEO who died last week, faced numerous personal struggles in his last few months, Forbes reports.
• Radio Disney is shutting down next year.
• Charli D’Amelio, the TikTok star with more than 100 million followers, is investing in teen banking app Step.

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Top picks from the Brew: 1) The best resources for anyone curious about the sales industry and 2) our special report all about the crazy logistics of distributing the Covid-19 vaccine. 

Store roulette: You call online shopping a vice, we call it stimulating the economy. Check out this site, which takes you to a new online retail outlet each time you click.  

Weekend conversation starters (books edition):

• Do you read the introductions to books? Be honest.
• How socially unacceptable is it to read a book you bought as a gift for someone else...before gifting it?
• What is the worst-best book you’ve ever read all the way through? 

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GAMES

Brew Crossword

Yesterday, Twitter user MattBetz25 tagged us in a tweet and wrote, “I don’t want to be too dramatic but I live for the Brew crosswords, what happened to them?"

Hey Matt, nothing happened to them. Play this week’s super creative puzzle from Brew reader Meg Freistedt right here.

+ Think you have what it takes to write your own? Spoiler: You do. Check out our tutorial then be sure to submit. If we select your crossword, we'll also send you the iconic Brewneck sweatshirt.