We are deep in the holiday season, with Hanukkah underway, and Christmas just around the corner. While the festive lights are up and the shopping rush is on, the markets and the economy don’t exactly pause for the festivities. In fact, the data keeps rolling in, offering a mix of signals that are as varied as the gifts under the tree. Since I’m always collecting interesting charts and stats, I thought I’d wrap up a few of the most notable ones from the last month. Consider this a financial stocking stuffer, ten bite-sized facts ranging from the historic demise of the penny to a dramatic decline in our math skills. Happy Holidays!
It’s All Relative. The Magnificent Seven – Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla – trade at a trailing P/E multiple of 36.8 times. That’s less than half of the average 80+ multiple that the ‘four horsemen’ of tech (Cisco, Microsoft, Dell, and Intel) reached during the Dot Com Bubble. (Source: Bloomberg Intelligence)
Lower Zestimates. Based on Zillow’s popular “Zestimate” home price measure, 53% of homes in the U.S. have fallen in value over the past year, which is up from a reading of just 14% a year ago and at the highest level since 2012, near the bottom of the post-Financial Crisis housing crash. (Source: Zillow)
K-Shaped Consumer. Consumer sentiment data from the Conference Board showed a sharp divergence in October based on income. Confidence among consumers making more than $125K had its largest monthly increase in a year, rising to the highest level since January, while those making less than $75K were the least confident since April. (Source: FT)
Labor Shortages. 27% of small businesses cited labor quality as their most important problem in October, which was the highest level since November 2021’s record high of 29%. The percentage of small business owners who were unable to fill job openings also reached its highest level since December 2020. (Source: NFIB)
Less Holiday Cheer. Due to economic concerns, Americans plan to spend an average of $1,595 on holiday gifts this year, down 10% from last year’s expected average of $1,778. 57% of consumers expect the economy to weaken in the year ahead, versus just 30% in 2024 and 54% in 2008. (Source: Deloitte)
Cheap and Stable Gas. On 12/1, the national average price of a gallon of unleaded gas fell to $2.998, representing the first sub-$3 price since May 2021. Over the last year, the national average price of gasoline has fluctuated by less than 9%, the narrowest one-year range since at least 2004. (Source: AAA)
Math Meltdown. A recent study published by UC San Diego highlighted that college students are increasingly unable to do basic math. In 2020, about 30 incoming freshmen at the school had math skills below the high school level, but that number increased to more than 900 in 2025, with 70% not fully meeting middle school math standards. (Source: The Atlantic)
Costco Blues. Costco (COST) sells over 150,000 rotisserie chickens a day and a billion toilet paper rolls a year. With $275 billion in revenue on a sub-$100 million ad budget, the Consumer Staples sector has been its best performer over the last ten years (+550%). On 11/19, though, the stock had its first 52-week closing low since 3/9/09. (Source: Globe and Mail, Bloomberg)
AI Invests Conservatively. A study found that Google Gemini and ChatGPT routinely offer more conservative investment strategies than human advisors by underweighting equities. Based on historical returns and a $100,000 portfolio, Gemini recommendations would have cost $17K in lost profits over 10 years compared to a human-advised portfolio, while ChatGPT would have cost $7.9K. (Source: MarketWatch)
Goodbye Penny. The U.S. Mint stamped its last penny ever on 11/12. From 1880 through 2024, the U.S. Mint produced 558.6 billion pennies, with an estimated 250 billion still in circulation. According to the U.S. Treasury, the cost to produce one penny is now 3.69 cents, and eliminating production will save $56 million per year. (Source: USA Today, Wikipedia)
From the end of an era for U.S. currency to the struggle for basic math skills on college campuses, the news flow this month has been anything but boring. It’s a good reminder that the economy isn’t just about GDP prints and interest rate decisions. It’s a complex collection of shifting trends, human behaviors, and sometimes, contradictory signals. I hope you found a few of these as interesting as I did. Whatever your plans are for the coming week, I hope you enjoy the time with family and friends. Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas.
Markets / Economy
- What started as a negative week turned around on Thursday as inflation came in well below expectations. The S&P finished the week up 0.1%, the Nasdaq was up 0.5%, and the small-cap Russell 2000 was down -0.9%.
- U.S. unemployment increased to 4.6% in November from 4.4% in September, exceeding market expectations of 4.4% and marking the highest level since September 2021.
- Retail sales in the U.S. were flat in October compared to September, following a downwardly revised 0.1% rise in the previous period, and below forecasts of a 0.1% rise.
- The annual Core CPI rate in the United States, which excludes volatile items like food and energy, fell to 2.6% in November, the lowest since March 2021 and below market expectations of 3%.
Stocks
- U.S. equities were in positive territory. Consumer Discretionary and Technology were the top performers, while Energy and Real Estate lagged. Growth stocks led value stocks, and large caps beat small caps.
- International equities closed higher for the week. Emerging markets fared better than developed markets.
Bonds
- The 10-year Treasury bond yield decreased four basis points to 4.15% during the week.
- U.S. bond markets were in positive territory this week, while International bond markets were negative.
- Government bonds led for the week, followed by corporate bonds and high-yield bonds.
