Recession Stocks, Recession Proof Jobs & Business - RecessionBiz.com

As we head into a near certain recession, every aspect of the economy is hurting from energy prices to financing availability and, especially, the job market. What is unique about today’s economy, however, is that we are in a transition within many industries, and there are a number of opportunities for workers with certain skill sets – the economic downturn is a transitory one and there are steps you can take to maximize your chances of success in this environment.

Among the various industries and areas that are undergoing fundamental changes are energy, health care, education, global trade and security. Work within these fields can be challenging and jobs are competitive, but they can provide an element of security that many traditional service and blue collar jobs do not provide, especially in a sharp economic down turn. Read the rest of this entry »

U.S. stocks plunged last week, driving the S & P toward the steepest monthly loss since 1938, on concern the seizure in credit markets will curb earnings more than analysts anticipated at industrial, consumer and technology companies.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was losing 144 points to 8235, and the S&P 500 was off 17 points at 859. The Nasdaq was lower by 26 points at 1526.

Reports this week may show the U.S. economy shrank last quarter for the second time in a year as consumers and companies retrenched. Futures on the Chicago Board of Trade show a 46 percent chance the Fed will lower its target for overnight bank loans, now 1.5 percent, by 75 basis points. That’s up from no chance a week ago. Odds for a half-point cut are 54 percent. Read the rest of this entry »

Here today, gone tomorrow - this is the worry of many investors who place their precious cash into stocks only to see the companies enter bankruptcy, making the underlying stock worthless. While there is risk in every single investment, no matter how safe, the true judge of a company’s value can be found in how well it performs over the test of time.

What’s the best way to know which companies have the mobility to survive the recession of 2008?

Well, a good approach to answering this question relies upon finding out which companies have help up over past recessions and used the lessons of those down turns to improve their operations and find new areas of profit.

Joseph Schumpeter, the famous Austrian economist, is credited with coining the term “creative destruction”. This concept refers to the fact that with shifts in the economy, opportunities arise through new innovations, ensuring that stronger ideas win out over time. Read the rest of this entry »

Rather than taking a “wait and see” approach to economic recovery, there are some proactive steps that you can take to boost your income well after the market has rebounded. By working to create value and providing stable sources of secondary income, you may find yourself shifting your focus to areas that are more profitable and well paying for you during a recession.

Even if you have a “safe”job and work hard, the growth in corporate layouts should encourage your to explore supplemental income sources outside of your main job.

Always make sure to keep these sources separate, and only transition to full time once you’re confident that your new income source is stable and lasting. Report show that nearly 1 in 4 companies plans to reduce its workforce in the coming year (see Market Watch ), creating the perfect opportunity to give yourself employment insurance. Read the rest of this entry »

At this point, the debate has shifted from whether we are in a recession to how deep this recession will be.

For investors, there might be a tendency to seek refuge and safety during uncertain times by pulling all of your funds out of the market. While holding safer investments is certainly a good route to go, try to resist the tenancy to move into a portfolio that consists only of cash equivalent holdings.

If you are raising a family, thinking about paying for a college education or two, putting money in the stock market or considering buying a house, you can’t help but be worried about the signs of an impending recession. Many economists are saying the U.S. is sitting on an economic house of cards, ready to collapse at any moment. Read the rest of this entry »

You may find yourself sitting around the dinner table wondering how you are going to make it through the economic recession. While it’s important to make contingency plans in case of a loss in pay or even time off of work, there are some important proactive steps you can take to lower your budget.

Rather than thinking of your budget costs as a sacrifice (though they are), you can come up with creative solutions that might even be broadly beneficial to your lifestyle. It is said that companies truly learn who they are during tough times - the same can be said of households, as families often come together as they seek inexpensive ways to save during a recession.

One great way that you can save is by having family meals instead of eating out. A creative way to do this is to assign each night of the week to a different family member - that individual gets to plan a menu around a budget, including shopping for the ingredients and preparing the meal. Read the rest of this entry »

On Oct. 6, he went on the “Today” show on NBC (which, like CNBC, is owned by NBC Universal) and said, “Whatever money you may need for the next five years, please take it out of the stock market. Right now. This week,” he told a surprised Ann Curry. “I do not believe that you should risk those assets in the stock markets.”

The Dow dropped 18 percent in the week that followed. In a follow-up visit to “Today,” one of the viewers wrote in to accuse him of shouting fire in a crowded building. (His reply: “But what happens if there is a fire in the building?”) When the Dow zoomed up 936 points on the following Monday, he was accused of leaving his loyal viewers standing on the sidelines. Read the rest of this entry »

You get home from work and quickly check CNBC to see how the stock market did, and the scene is all too common: the market has over reacted to speculation and the Dow Jones is either up or down a few hundred points. The scene is all too common as the market runs from mania to mania, seeking stability with a reluctance to find a stable trading pattern. While it’s easy to get caught up in this excess volatility, keep in mind that it is a product of computerized trading programs as much as individual decision making, and that there are a set of core market fundamentals beginning to emerge.

A large part of today’s volatility is because of ever-changing regulatory structures which are undergoing negotiations and shifts on a near daily basis. As federal regulators come to better grasp what is the ideal structure to handle the new Federal power, we will finally begin to see some stability return to both the credit and equities markets.

Read more from InvestmentSafe.org

Finding a recession proof job or business on Main Street or on Wall Street is today’s economy is a scary proposition.

While the stock market climbs and falls quite drastically on a daily basis, the numbers that hit closer to home are always the growing unemployment figures. As the American economy goes through a wide transformation over the next several years, we are going to see a number of industries evolve - as a result, it’s important to keep the job market in perspective when you think about your long term career prospects.

Currently, we are primarily hearing negative news on the economic job front, with housing starts down in the context of slowing home mortgage industry and traditional manufacturing jobs moving abroad or paying lower, non-union wages. Recent surveys suggest that a number of employers plan a hiring freeze for the foreseeable future, with little prospect of growth in the short run. Major international conglomerates such as Honeywell (see: The Star Tribune) and even city governments such as Boston (see: The Boston Herald) have slowed hiring for this year and into next. Read the rest of this entry »

Reading the news today, it may seem like today’s financial difficulties are unprecedented. Based upon the actions by the Federal Government, there often seems no precedent for many of the recent changes in the regulatory environment. What is interesting is that, if you look a bit deeper, it seems that what we’re witnessing in the markets follows similar patterns to other structural recessions in the US economy. In part, the growth of modern finance has made the effects of the recent mortgage crisis more widespread while the expansion of modern media has made the public more aware of its implications.

Last year, at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium, before the full breadth of our current recession were clear, Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke spoke about the History of Recessions (see http://www.cnbc.com/id/20530199). Of particular note, Bernanke reflect that “institutional changes in the US housing and mortgage markets have significantly influenced…the economy’s cyclical dynamics…understanding these linkages…(helps) us better cope with the implications of future developments.” Today, the speech seems as prescient as ever, and recent economic history is rife with lessons. Taking a historical perspective on today’s events, however, reveals that looking back at historical recession patterns can help lend insight into our path to a more stable economic future. Read the rest of this entry »