Good Evening! On Friday, stocks rose at the start of the trading day. Still, they gave up those gains in the early afternoon after University of Michigan consumer sentiment data revealed a significant rise in consumer inflation expectations.
All three benchmarks finished in the red with S&P 500 declining by 0.16%, Dow Jones barely going under by 0.03%, and the Nasdaq Composite finishing down the most by 0.35%.
GET THEM WHILE THEY ARE HOT
The company Krispy Kreme (DNUT) has been implementing a test for the past six weeks, which involves delivering freshly made doughnuts on a daily basis to McDonald’s (MCD) establishments located in Kentucky. According to Krispy Kreme’s CEO, Mike Tattersfield, both parties involved in this initiative have expressed satisfaction with the current outcomes.
So what is this test? The test was first launched in October as a component of its delivery fresh daily (DFD) model, encompassing nine locations in Louisville, KY, and nearby areas. In the previous month, the partnership underwent an expansion that included roughly 160 locations throughout the Louisville-Lexington Kentucky area. According to Tattersfield, in order to attain success, it is essential for the team to prioritize aspects such as freshness, delivery schedules, and packaging.
Why would this be important to either party? According to JPMorgan analyst John Ivankoe, McDonald’s is implementing a “demand planning” strategy, which entails assuming ownership of the product after the doughnuts have been shipped from the Krispy Kreme facility. JPM has made a prediction that Krispy Kreme may potentially experience a margin increase of approximately 40% per store. However, it should be noted that the likelihood of a nationwide expansion remains a difficult task.
ALL TIME HIGH!
The Conference Board recently published data indicating that job satisfaction among US workers has reached a record high of 62.3%, the highest percentage since the inception of the survey in 1987.
What is the cause of the recent increase in satisfaction? The recent increase in employee happiness is primarily attributed to the adoption of hybrid work arrangements, job flexibility, and a competitive labor market that has enabled individuals to switch from unsatisfactory jobs to more desirable ones.
Gender disparity also exists in worker satisfaction. Females expressed lower levels of satisfaction compared to males across 26 categories that were evaluated, encompassing areas such as leave policies, promotions, and organizational culture. How big is the gap? with 68.7% of men reporting satisfaction compared to 61.8% of women.
However, things could change… The impact of a possible economic downturn on employee satisfaction remains uncertain. In the event of a substantial cooling of the labor market, employees may face difficulty in leaving unsatisfactory jobs due to a decrease in hiring by companies.