>> susie: a grim report on jobs shows 39,000 were added last month much less than expected. >> we continue to have uncertainty about where tax rates are going to be just four weeks from now. and, that not something that really supportive of businesses making decisions about long-term hiring. >> tom: what small businesses, economists and job seekers say about the nation's employment picture. you're watching "nightly business" report for friday, december 3. this is "nightly business report" with susie gharib and tom hudson. "nightly business report" is made possible by:

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>> susie: good evening, everyone. the job market is even worse than we thought. tom, the unemployment rate unexpectedly jumped closer to 10% in november, that's the highest it's been in 7 months. >> tom: susie, american businesses are barely hiring these days. the unemployment rate now stands at 9.8% up from 9.6% in october. and only 39,000 jobs were created last month. >> susie: today's report is a painful reality check for the millions of americans looking for jobs. it's also a reminder for all of us that the economic recovery is much slower than we hoped. suzanne pratt reports. >> reporter: this was supposed to be the report that showed the economy was gaining traction. it wasn't, despite busier factories, rising auto sales and cheerier consumers. we have yet to see any meaningful increase in hiring. the weakness in november was

broad-based with construction firms, factories and retailers all cutting jobs. economist brian jones says the job market is sluggish at best. >> to be fair, you need somewhere between 100,000 to 150,000 workers added per month to keep the unemployment rate constant. and, we haven't been able to do that with the numbers that we got in this morning's report. >> reporter: at new york's rockefeller center three weeks before christmas it doesn't seem like the nation's labor market is in the worst shape it's been in more than half a century. not only are the streets busy with office workers but the stores are teeming with holiday shoppers. that may be because midtown manhattan is an anomaly with its large number of tourists. but, it may also be because more jobs are being created than counted. that's exactly what happened in october. it turns out 21,000 more positions were added to payrolls than originally thought. economist conrad de quadros says we should expect november's count to be revised higher, too.

>> if we look at where other employment indicator are, the ism non-manufacturing employment index, which only fell slightly, the level of jobless claims. all of those suggest the labor market conditions were stronger in november than the employment report suggests. >> reporter: even if the labor department engages in some serious revisionist math, there's no question the job market stinks. some experts blame the modest level of demand for stuff in the economy. others blame washington and the inability of lawmakers to give companies clarity about the outlook for costs. >> we're in the final month of the year and we continue to have uncertainty about where tax rates are going to be just four weeks from now. and, that not something that really supportive of businesses making decisions about long-term hiring. >> reporter: until companies feel more confident about the future, expect the u.s. to remain stuck in a jobless recovery. suzanne pratt, "nightly business report," new york.

>> tom: here are the stories in tonight's n.b.r. newswheel: stocks end the day a little higher: the dow rose 19 points, the nasdaq added 12, and the s&p 500 was up three points. trading volume dipped from yesterday's levels on both the nyse and the nasdaq. recommendations from the president's deficit commission won't be heading to congress for a vote. that proposal did not get majority support today from the commission's members. oil prices hit their highest point in two years closing above $89 a barrel in new york. the 1.5% pop came as that new employment report raises questions about the strength of the recovery. >> susie: still ahead, you're hired. they're the magic words many americans are eager to hear. tonight, one older worker tells us what it's like to get back in the workforce. >> tom: it's no secret small businesses drive job growth. so what will it take to get those small business owners hiring? books and books started in south florida in 1982.

it now has six locations with about 75 employees. it hasn't hired anyone new in more than a year. instead founder mitchell kaplan has focused on maintaining the pay and benefits of his current employees. we spoke with him today at his miami beach store, and began by asking him what he needs to see to start hiring. >> well, clearly that has to do with if we're able to enjoy an increase in business, a significant increase in business. as you know, the book market in general is a kind of uncertain place these days. bookstores in general. small businesses are difficult, but the book business is even that much more difficult, with the pressures from the internet and ebooks and all of that. what we've been trying to do is emphasize our stores as places for people to come. >> tom: what are you looking for in terms of a percentage increase or a dollar increase where you're feeling comfortable enough that it is

sustainable to add to payroll? >> i believe what we need to be sure about is we don't want to set ourselves up with an infrastructure that will be too rich for what might happen in the future. i think if i'm confident that we can, you know, grow our sales in the 10% range, 5% to 10% in it's next year, i would look at hiring some additional folks. >> tom: what about the environment that is out there? >> not many small businesses are able to provide health insurance for their employees. but it is something we've been very proud of to be able to do. and health care costs have just gone through the roof. each year when we come up for renewal, we're looking at 20% increases. and the other thing i think would help us immensely, broi bricks and morter stores if there was

sanity put back into collecting taxes on intersales. you can provide from an online provider and not pay sales tax, but if you buy from us, you have to pay sales tax. >> tom: >> susie: and now with another take on the job market: what are the issues facing more experienced, seasoned workers, looking for jobs. in our ongoing series "you're hired", bill bridges explains how he found work after years of unemployment, and offers some advice to older americans on tackling the job search. >> i'm bill bridges. i'm working here at all souls as an office manager cum receptionist. i was unemployed for a considerable period of time-- about six years. i used to be in senior management, executive management, and due to my age, it was very difficult for me to find employment straight away. if i say that i've educated

just to get a job, any kind of job at all for an older worker, somebody with a lot of experience, very hard, very hard. i think that my experience in the process of finding a job for an older person in particular is useful. try to find a job not through conventional means of sending resumes out, but to just meet with people, talk to them about your goals, befriend people, get to know them so they get to know you. if you do enough of that, you're going to find something. through a number of networking what attracted me to the religious organizations was the opportunity to do work in the community which was useful and also, i've always been i started attending services here and mixing with the congregation, telling my story and how i was looking for work. the office manager position became open, and there was like 320 applicants, and through the selection process, i managed to win out and get the job,

thankfully. >> susie: tom, this morning when the employment report came out, we were bracing ourselves for a big sell on wall street. surprisingly, the stocks closed up. >> tom: they still were up, and let's not forget the previous two sessions. we've seen one heck of a rally in the month of

november. let's get everyone updated in tonight's "market focus." a sour employment report did not sour investors appetite for stocks, as the december rally stretched into straight three sessions this week. the dow industrials jumped 290 points this week, up 2.6% thanks to the rallies wednesday, thursday and today. the nasdaq is two and a quarter percent higher tonight compared to a week ago. and the s&p 500's three percent rally takes it back to its november high and within a whisper of a two year high. while today's gains were more subdued, they were led by a familiar trio, materials, energy and financials. the materials exchange traded fund added almost 1%. while volume was lighter than average, the rally this week has taken it to a new 52-week high. the same goes for the energy e.t.f. this rally has taken it to a new 52-week high, but again lighter volume. both the materials and energy

sectors clearly are commodity focused. we saw a handful of commodities hit new 52-week highs. energy prices have been jumping. crude oil was at $80 a barrel just before thanksgiving. tonight, it's just below $90 a barrel. as winter weather stretches across the northeast, heating oil has been rallying. and silver is closing in on $30 an ounce. speaking of energy, ocean shipping company dry-ships plans to sell a chunk of its energy drilling rig business. the stock saw huge volume today more than 63 million shares trading. the price closed up 12% to its highest level since may. it sold part of its rig business to private investors, but the speculation is an initial public offering may be in the plans. there are always rumors swirling about apple's newest products, especially the iphone. today, those rumors hit small cap tech stock micro-vision. the firm makes a small accessory that plugs into a cell phone making them into a projector. one analyst speculated a projector would be a new add-on

for the newest iphone. volume spiked today on the talk to more than 25 times its average trading pace. the stock gained 9%, but remains below $2 per share. and is half the price it was a year ago. some drug news allergan was active after the close tonight. it makes the weight loss device, the lap-band. the stock saw just a fractional gain during the regular session but it added another 3% after the close. an f.d.a. advisory panel supported the use of its lap- band. meantime, it's a legal fight between teva pharmaceuticals and momenta. teva is the world's biggest generic drug maker and fights itself the target of a patent lawsuit filed by momenta. the two stocks were split today. momenta claims teva has used patents for producing heparin. that's a blood thinner commonly used by heart patients, a multi- billion dollars a year business. and that's tonight's market focus.

>> susie: there was an unexpected windfall for many families this year and it came in the form of estate taxes or the absence of them. but that's expected to change on january first. tonight's tax tips looks at what to expect from the estate tax in the new year. here's our tax expert, kevin mccormally editorial director at kiplinger's personal finance. >> when congress voted back in 2001 to make 2010 the first year with no federal estate tax since 1916, almost nobody thought it would really happen. after all, what kind of sense would it make to have an estate tax in 2009, abolish it for 2010

and then revive it for 2011. you might remember that there were all sorts of not so funny jokes about life support for folks at the end of 2009 and pulling the plug at the end of 2010 to make the most of the tax-free year. as it turned out, though, all the experts who thought the tax would never disappear, including yours truly, were wrong. the tax did expire, which means the estates of the richest 15,000 americans who die this year will avoid paying about $20 billion in estate tax. what happens next? well, if congress does nothing, the estate tax will be back next month with a vengeance. last year, the first $3.5 million of an estate was tax free and the tax rate was 45%. come january, only $1 million will pass to heirs, other than a spouse, tax free and the top rate will be 55%. but let me stick my neck out again. at kiplinger, we believe that sometime during this lame duck session, or fairly early in 2011, congress will act to prevent the massive expansion of the estate tax.

instead, we think lawmakers will okay a tax free level of at least $3.5 million and limit the top tax rate to no more than 45%. the exemption might go as high as $5 million, in fact, and the top rate could fall to 35%. we'll have to wait and see. i'm kevin mccormally. >> tom: here's what we're watching for next week. our friday market monitor guest is howard ward, chief investment officer of growth equities at gamco investors. monday, beyond the scoreboard tackles the n.f.l., how the league is preparing for a fight with the players union and the possible economic fall-out. and what's the hottest commodity in real estate these days? here's a hint: farmers aren't the only ones buying it. >> susie: viacom is going after google's you tube it wants a federal appeals court to revisit a ruling that found you tube is protected against copyright infringement, even though it had carried thousands of pirated video clips. viacom is asking for a billion dollars in damages, because some

of those clips were taken from its channels like m.t.v. and comedy central. google believes the lower court's ruling will stand. >> tom: fedex will raise its ground shipping rates, just in time for the new year. the shipping giant says the nearly 5% increase will go into effect on january third. today's announcement follows price hikes for fedex express and fedex freight announced in september. last month, rival u.p.s. said it would raise rates by the same amount also starting on january third.

>> tom: selective and defensive. that's how tonight's market monitor is approaching the investment market. he's alan lancz, director of research at lanczglobal.com and editor of "the lancz newsletter" >> tom: he joins us tonight from the nasdaq. welcome back, alan. nice to see you again. >> thank you, tom. >> tom: the stocks were able to fight off the european worries, and then the unemployment rate, and why go defensive at all? >> the time to go risk was in august when evaluations were low and investors were worried about a double dip in the economy. now that you've had a big

rally in stocks and the expectations were higher, i think it is a good time to be prudent. as you know, most of our clients, as far as very risk adverse. now is a time to look at income, pull in the horns a little and take some profits, and not chase stocks with undo high risk. >> tom: what about evaluation in the fixed income space. we've seen bond yields move up. why not going defensive there? >> i think as interest rates go up, which is a possibility here because the fed is artificially pressing interest rates lower -- you know, there is more risk in bonds, and the reward potential is very low. so actually in our managed accounts, we have less exposure in fixed income than any time in our history. >> tom: so record low in terms of exposure to bonds. do you expect a rally to come if and when congress is able to put together a tax cut? >> yeah. i think there are a couple of catalysts that could move this rally further.

one is year-end window dressing and a lot of hedge fund funds and mutual funds have underperformed so they're going to be chasing. and the other one, if they extend the bush tax cuts, it will be a positive catalyst for stocks. >> tom: you are finding some bargains, especially in health care. pfizer and merck, both of the stocks have been under pressure, although pfizer shares up slightly today, the same with merck. but each lower than they were a year ago. why put good money to work? >> the good dividend yield. defensive. and all you hear about is the patent expir rations, and you don't hear about their pipeline or recent acquisitions beyond even those two companies. when you have low expect expectations, there is low risk. you get a good dividend, 4.5%. so that's why we like those two. >> tom: more than just drug-makers, in health

care, a breast cancer de techs company called ho hologic, and still putting money to work below $18 per share? >> it has moved up beyond our buy limit. we have discipline buy limits, and buy limit is 17. they had new approval on a mammogram system that i think will be very, very -- really the gold standard in the industry. and they're big on the denseoto meters to discover bone diseases like osteoporosis. so no income there, but more for the growth investor. >> tom: and you also are looking at large cap, mega cap electric utility. excelon. i believe it is the largest producer of atomic power in the united states. the stock has had a difficult time. >> yeah.

trading near new lows like merck and pfizer, and over 5.5% dividend. the largest nuclear power energy generator in the united states. i think, again, long-term investors it will buy and hold. you can get 5%, 8% appreciation over the years. >> tom: when you mean long-term, do you mean three years or more? five years or more? >> at least two, three years. if we're wrong, it might take longer. >> tom: six months ago you were here with three picks. back pax ter, and h & r block 23% higher, and the other up 6%. do you like any of these three? >> we look -- h & r block we would buy on weakness. and the other two we'd buy on weakness. >> tom: disclosures or ownership in all of these positions? >> we own them all.

we haven't sold the three we spoke about six months ago. >> tom: he is alan lancz with the langs business letter. >> tom: that's "nightly business report" for friday, december 3. we want to remind you this is the time of year your public television station seeks your support. >> susie: support that makes programs like nightly business report possible. >> tom: thanks for joining us and don't forget to support your public television station. i'm tom hudson. goodnight everyone and have a great weekend. you too, susie. >> susie: goodnight, tom. i'm susie gharib. we'll see all of you again next week. "nightly business report" is made possible by: this program was made possible by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you.

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