RJ and Makay

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A study by the Kauffman Foundation shows that the number of IPOs can directly affect economic growth, according to the study “fast growing entrepreneurial firms create the nation’s most significant employment.” The recent slowdown of IPOs from small companies has “negatively affected aggregate employment.” From 1996 to 2010, 2,766 companies went public in the United States.

Saving the environment is important to Americans, but not at the expense of jobs and the economy, suggests a recent Gallup poll. In fact, Americans are picking the economy over the environment by the widest margin in nearly three decades, the poll shows.

Of the approximately 1,000 U.S. adults surveyed, 54% said economic growth trumps protecting the environment compared with 36% who thought the environment should take priority. Those percentages were reversed for the past several decades, but Americans began to change their tune after the Great Recession set in.

Despite all the gloomy news lately, financial advisors (FAs) remain steadfastly optimistic about the future, shows the latest quarterly research from Russell Investments. “The headlines seem to reinforce everything that's going wrong, but financial advisors who are more experienced are seeing a substantial amount of optimism,” says Kevin Bishopp, director of practice management at Russell's private client services business.

Russell's quarterly survey of about 800 FAs was conducted in late January and early February, so it doesn't reflect the unfolding disaster in Japan. But the political unrest that was sweeping across Africa and the Middle East when the survey was being done apparently wasn't enough to dim respondents' outlook.