Just like a battered train engine wakes up to its life, economy is slowly gaining steam. If history is any guide, the economy will pick up the speed very fast before you even notice it. Ok, that’s a wishful thinking, I know.

The fact is that there are signs of life in the dark world of stock investors. There may be, just may be, light at the end of the tunnel. For the first time in the last 19 months, an index based on a survey of U.S. manufacturing purchasing managers crossed a threshold indicating factory output grew. Institute for Supply Management’s index of purchasing-manager sentiment rose to 52.9 in August from 48.9 in July, crossing the 50 mark that indicates the sector is expanding.

Good news is that manufacturing activity in China, France and Australia, among other countries, also expanded in August. “We had been looking for improvement, but the speed at which it’s come and the magnitude with which it has come is surprising,” said J.P. Morgan economist Bruce Kasman. Well, the surprise is good as long as it’s a pleasant surprise!

Related Link: Global economy gains steam

First, Merry Christmas to all our readers!

If you look around, you will hear news about unemployment and layoffs all over the place. When we turn on TV everyone is talking about thousands of layoffs. All newspapers write about how people are struggling to survive with unemployment at its high.

Is there any job available at all? Is everyone just eating wood for the breakfast?! There are hundreds of thousands of jobs lost all over this country. Still, some jobs are available in industries that are recession proof.

Health care, Insurance, Legal, Education and Security industries are still hiring. If you are qualified to join any of these industries then go for it even if you need to relocate. Wall Street Journal reports that even companies like SRI International plan to add 100 new positions next year. Companies like Merck and Novartis also plan to hire more people next year.

It’s time to polish your resume and send it to the employers that are seriously looking for people to hire.

Forget the offshoring, some companies bring the work back home right here in U.S. These companies are frustrated with poor quality service provided by offshore workers and backlash from general public. Costs of workers in offshore companies are also rising exponentially every year. In just few years, it may cost you the same irrespective of whether you hire an American or an offshoring employee in India or Philippines.

Having said that, call center companies already started embracing home-shoring concept, meaning that they employ Americans to do the support job. These jobs typically pay around $8 to $14 without any benefits. More on home-shoring concept is here.

It’s not just the employees are afraid of job loss. Even CEOs are afraid that their jobs will be lost. As per a survey by the leaders in London International Leadership Summit 2008, almost 1000 business leaders believed that their jobs will be lost.

Global financial meltdown continues to takes its toll. SAP is planning for layoffs. Many companies such as Microsoft put the hiring on hold. New home constructions decreased 4.5% to a seasonally adjusted 791,000 annual rate, after falling 3.0% in September to 828,000, the Commerce Department said today. Year over year, new home constructions were 38.0% below the level of construction in October 2007. Meanwhile, home builders’ confidence in the market has plunged to a new record low amid overwhelming uncertainty about the economy.
U.S. consumer prices took the biggest plunge in 61 years during October, pulled down by a sinking economy that evidence suggests is sending inflation lower. The consumer price index dropped 1.0% on a seasonally adjusted basis compared to the previous month, the Labor Department said today. It was the largest drop since February 1947. The core consumer price index (CPI) fell 0.1% in October. It shows that inflation is not a big threat right now. When the consumer price falls, the inflation goes down. Less inflation is a good thing, but if the inflation goes down too much, it becomes “deflation”, that’s what people started worrying about now.

Related Link: It’s gloomy out there