Remember that financial literacy course you had to take in high school? It’s not helping that much, according to research from Harvard University. Nearly 30 states require some sort of financial literacy training for their high-school students. But after studying U.S. census data and other sources, professors Shawn Cole and Gauri Kartini Shastry found that students graduating just before the classes were mandated participate in the stock market at nearly the exact same rate as those graduating after. Such participation is important, as stock investing offers one of the best ways to save for retirement. The researchers don’t suggest scrapping financial literacy courses but say they should be under more scrutiny for effectiveness.
Long lashes.
Even a recession can’t keep eyelashes down. Allergan recently won federal approval for its Latisse treatment, which makes eyelashes thicker, fuller and darker. It will require a doctor’s prescription, carries the potential for such side effects as eye redness and will cost about $120 per bottle.
But Citi Investment Research analyst John Boris nevertheless estimates it could reap $40 million in 2009 sales, even with the recession. Allergan thinks it could eventually reach $500 million in annual sales — about as much as patients paid for Zoloft in 2007 to treat depression.
Still on top.
Developing economies have been among the world’s biggest losers in 2008. Stocks in Brazil, Russia, India and China plummeted even farther than those from developed nations, as the global recession ground down optimism about the emerging economies.
Even so, gains made in prior years in the so-called BRIC nations were so huge that they’re still ahead of developed countries when viewed over a five- or 10-year time frame.
Layoff total.
Last year was likely the worst for job losses since 1945. Employers slashed their payrolls by 1.9 million jobs through November, with 533,000 coming from that month alone. When the government reports data for December on Friday, economists expect another 500,000 jobs lost, for a total of 2.4 million.
That would be the most since 2.8 million jobs disappeared at the tail end of World War II in 1945, with most of those — 2 million — coming in one month, September.
The Associated Press
