Blog Posts by Morgan Korn

U.S. employers added 146,000 new jobs in November and the unemployment rate dropped to 7.7% from 7.9% -- the lowest since December 2008. The consensus was for a jobs gain of just 90,000.

The uptick in jobs was "a pleasant surprise" but the report was "mixed," says Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at IHS. The unemployment rate fell largely because 350,000 Americans dropped out of the labor force, Behravesh notes. In addition, the government revised down the jobs tally for September and October by 49,000.

Behravesh admits he was "surprised" by the faster pace of job creation in November and attributes the shock to an overestimation of Sandy's impact on Northeast employers. The government reported that Superstorm Sandy had a minimal effect on the labor market. The economy could see a bounce in the next few months as thousands of workers are hired to rebuild and reconstruct communities devastated by the storm, Behravesh believes.

"Natural disasters tend to shift the numbers around a

Microsoft (MSFT) launched its new Windows 8 operating system on Oct. 26 with much fanfare. Many in the company believed it would be the product that would turn around the world's largest software maker's recent woes. Windows 8 offered touch-screen capabilities and was compatible on tablets, desktops and other mobile devices. But news last week that unit sales of Windows PCs in U.S. stores fell 21% between Oct. 21 and Nov. 17 caused tech experts to wonder if Microsoft could ever regain the stature that it once held in the computer world. According to NPD, sales of Windows PCs not only decreased compared to the same four-week period in 2011, but sales of Windows tablets were "almost nonexistent" — accounting for just 1% of Microsoft's PC business. NPD's analysis was conducted before the Black Friday shopping weekend, so an uptick in sales is likely. Yet Microsoft's push into markets now dominated by its competitors Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOG) could prove to be a little too late. Even

The finger pointing continues in the Hewlett-Packard/Autonomy fiasco. The struggling computer maker reported this month that it would take an $8.8 billion charge due to its $11.1 billion acquisition of British software company Autonomy. The write-down essentially wiped out Hewlett-Packard's (HPQ) profits in the third quarter. CEO Meg Whitman said Autonomy had inflated its value and accused the company of "serious accounting improprieties." Autonomy founder Mike Lynch characterized the attacks as H-P's "attempt to set the bar so low that you can't possibly fail," according to The New York Times. Corporate accountants for both companies have been criticized and questioned over their decision to sign off on the deal.

Related: HP Is "the Epitome of a Value Trap" After "Embarrassing Debacle": Ritholtz

Now, H-P investors have filed a lawsuit against H-P's board of directors, including Ms. Whitman, former H-P CEO Leo Apotheker, auditors Deloitte, KPMG, Barclays and Perella Weinberg Partners

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney vowed he'd do this as president. Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has been a public advocate of it. But the White House says it would not label the nation's largest trading partner — China — a currency manipulator.

In its semi-annual report to Congress on international economic and exchange rate policies, the Treasury Department says China has taken steps to appreciate its currency, the renminbi, and "Chinese authorities have substantially reduced the level of official intervention in exchange markets since the third quarter of 2011." According to the report, China's move to a flexible exchange rate regime has caused the renminbi to appreciate 12.6% against the U.S. dollar since June 2010 (adjusting for inflation) but the currency "remains significantly undervalued, and further appreciation of the RMB against the dollar and other major currencies is warranted."

As The Daily Ticker's Aaron Task and Henry Blodget discuss in the attached clip,

Mary Schapiro, who resigned as chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, may be best remembered for what she did not accomplish during her almost four-year tenure at the federal watchdog agency.

Justin Fox, editorial director at Harvard Business Review, says Schapiro's "signature moment" at the SEC was when she fought to reform money market mutual funds. These funds came into focus after the $64.8 billion Reserve Fund "broke the buck" following the 2008 collapse of Lehman Brothers. Even though Schapiro's proposal was "rational" — it advocated a floating NAV and would have required money market funds to hold cash reserves — she ultimately failed to convince the agency's four commissioners to support her. The mutual fund industry, which vehemently opposed Schapiro's efforts, lobbied Schapiro's colleagues "so hard" to defeat the measure, Fox notes, and it was never brought to a vote.

This case underscores the internal flaws at the SEC, Fox says. Its current

Missed those Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals? You're not alone. Some retailers like Amazon.com (AMZN) are extending their holiday sales for an entire week to lure in shoppers. The holiday shopping season has just commenced but early signs are pointing to a jolly year for retailers, especially online retailers.

Related: How to Protect Yourself While Shopping Online This Holiday Season: Wired's Mat Honan

According to research firm comScore, online sales totaled $1.04 billion Black Friday weekend, a 26% gain from last year. Online retailers are expected to post $43.4 billion in holiday sales this year. A survey conducted for the National Retail Federation estimates that more than 129 million Americans shopped online on Cyber Monday, up from 123 million on the same day last year. E-commerce currently makes up less than 10 percent of consumer spending in the U.S.

Related: Why Black Friday Holiday Sales Matter Less Than Ever Before

Amazon.com was the most-visited retail Web site on

Another Apple bull has jumped ship.

Barry Ritholtz, CEO of Fusion Analytics, has been reducing his clients' positions in Apple (AAPL) since October and has even advised them to cut exposure to the tech giant by at least a third in their personal portfolios. The stock has reversed its downward slide in the past week but is still off about 14% in three months and nearly 20% from its September high. In comparison, the Nasdaq Composite Index (IXIC) is down 3.3% in three months and the S&P 500 Index (GSPC) is flat.

Related: Apple Backlash Hits Critical Mass But "Cheap" Stock Stuck in Limbo

Ritholtz says the stock's precipitous fall has less to do with the recent complaints surrounding Apple products — specifically its highly criticized Maps app, which forced Apple CEO Tim Cook to apologize to consumers and investors in an open letter on the company's Web site — and more to do with dismal third-quarter earnings. Many investors and hedge funds are trying to lock in gains before the end of

For die-hard shoppers, Black Friday cannot come soon enough. An estimated 147 million Americans will hit the malls or surf online retail Web sites this Friday, Saturday and Sunday for deals on electronics, toys, apparel and housewares.

Black Friday no longer officially begins the morning after Thanksgiving; many retailers have started opening their doors to customers a little earlier every November and this year is no exception. Stores including Target, Toys "R" Us, Sears and Wal-Mart have decided to commence the shopping festivities on Thanksgiving evening, prompting some analysts to refer to the night as "Black Friday Eve." The reason behind the early push stems from the increased competition brick-and-mortar stores now face from their online counterparts says Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at The NPD Group. There are thousands of Americans willing to wake up before dawn for "doorbuster" sales but choosing to open when many Americans are still eating their Thanksgiving dinner