BOOM: Stocks Hit New Record… BUST: Business hiring 7-year low

S&P 500 jumps to record high on strong earnings, trade-deal progress

The S&P 500 hit a record high on Monday, breaking above an all-time high set over the summer as investors cheered strong earnings and progress on U.S.-China trade.

The S&P 500 rose 0.6% to trade above 3,027.98, the record set on July 26. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.7%, or 186 points. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.7%.

President Donald Trump called in a tweet the move to record highs a “big win for jobs, 401-K’s, and, frankly, EVERYONE.”

Survey: US business hiring falls to a 7-year low

WASHINGTON (AP) — A measure of hiring by U.S. companies has fallen to a seven-year low and fewer employers are raising pay, a business survey has found.

Just one-fifth of the economists surveyed by the National Association for Business Economics said their companies have hired additional workers in the past three months. That is down from one-third in July. Job totals were unchanged at 69% of companies, up from 57% in July. A broad measure of job gains in the survey fell to its lowest level since October 2012.

The hiring slowdown comes as more businesses are reporting slower growth of sales and profits. Business economists also expect the economy’s growth to slow in the coming year, partly because tariffs have raised prices and cut into sales for many firms.

“The U.S. economy appears to be slowing, and respondents expect still slower growth over the next 12 months,” said Constance Hunter, NABE president and chief economist at the accounting firm KPMG.

Economy’s bumpy ride about to get bumpier… 

Job creation, third-quarter GDP likely to show deterioration

Slumping Halloween sales spook experts…

Beyond ghosts and ghouls and the walking dead, Halloween may have some frightening news for the economy.

Retailers say they expect American consumers to shell out $8.8 billion this Halloween on costumes, candy and pumpkins. That figure may sound massive, but it represents the second consecutive fall in annual spending, a worrying sign for a consumer-driven economy — and for President Trump‘s reelection prospects.

In a year that’s seen tariffs imposed on $360 billion in imports from China and with warning signs of a recession flashing, the bite into holiday spending could be a sign the economy is going the way of the undead.

The trend for consumer sentiment over the past year has been clear, according to John Leer, an analyst at Morning Consult, which recently launched a daily consumer sentiment index that tracks how consumers feel about the current economy and their expectations of where the economy is headed.