Sustainable Impact Investing, or ESG investing, is gaining traction not only with Argus Research clients but also with the global investment community. BlackRock CEO Lawrence Fink, who oversees approximately $9 trillion in assets, announced in January 2020 that his firm would be investing in companies that are making progress on sustainability. He doubled down in his January 2021 letter, calling on company managements to disclose their plans for making their businesses "compatible with a net-zero economy" by 2050. As assets have flowed in over the past 40 years, Sustainable Impact Investing has evolved. The discipline, originally known as Socially Responsible Investing, focused at first on excluding companies that conducted business in South Africa, or participated in industries such as tobacco, alcohol, and firearms. Performance of these initial strategies lagged, and the approach has been modified. Now, instead of merely identifying industries to avoid, the discipline promotes "sustainable" business practices across all industries that can have an "impact" on global issues such as climate, hunger, poverty, disease, shelter, and workers' rights.

Stocks rose on Wednesday morning as investors weighed new employment and manufacturing data, and awaited the release of the Fed's latest meeting minutes this afternoon. The Labor Department said that first-time claims for state unemployment benefits rose by 17,000 to 240,000 for the week ended November 19, above the Reuters consensus forecast of 225,000. Capital goods orders were stronger than expected. The Commerce Department said that orders for core capital goods excluding aircraft rose 0.7% in October after a 0.8% decline in September. The consensus forecast had called for flat orders last month. The Dow rose 0.1%, the S&P 0.3%, and the Nasdaq 0.7%. Crude oil fell sharply to $78 per barrel, while gold traded near $1744 per ounce.

Stocks rose on Tuesday morning amid more comments on rate hikes from Fed officials and earnings reports from major retailers. Best Buy shares rose 10% after the company posted above-consensus 3Q revenue and EPS, and raised its full-year sales outlook. Dollar Tree shares fell 10%, despite solid 3Q results, as the discount retailer said that 2022 earnings would come in toward the low end of its guidance range. The Dow rose 0.8%, the S&P 0.6%, and the Nasdaq 0.1%. Crude oil rose 2% to $81.50 per barrel, while gold traded near $1745 per ounce.

Stocks surged on Thursday following positive inflation data, recording their strongest one-day advance since 2020. The Labor Department said that its consumer price index rose 7.7% from the prior year in October, down from 8.2% in September and below the consensus forecast of 7.9%. The core CPI, excluding food and energy, also rose at a lower-than-expected 6.3% rate. On the employment front, first-time claims for state unemployment benefits rose by 7,000 to 225,000 for the week ended November 5, slightly above the consensus forecast. Continuing claims rose to 1.493 million, also up from the prior week and above consensus. The Dow soared 3.70%, the S&P 5.54%, and the Nasdaq 7.35%. Crude oil rose slightly to $86 per barrel, while gold jumped $47 to $1760 per ounce.

Rally in October, Stumble on the Fed: Our Monthly Survey of the Economy, Interest Rates, and Stocks