October 30, 2018
HB Business News: Huntington Beach hosts World Junior Surfing Championship
The HB Business News runs every Tuesday in the Chamber Preview and is posted to the Chamber's Facebook and Twitter pages. All videos are produced by Matt Liffreing, Marketworks Video.

News
U.S. consumer spending rose for a seventh straight month in September, but income recorded its smallest gain in more than a year on moderate wage growth, suggesting the current pace of spending was unlikely to be sustained. Also, the increase in income at the disposal of households was the smallest in 15 months and savings dropped to their lowest level since December last year. There are signs the stimulus from the Trump administration’s $1.5 trillion tax cut package has peaked. Source: BEA
Note: the fundamentals for consumer spending remain strong, with consumer confidence at multi-year highs.

Data from the U.S. Department of Commerce shows an increase in government spending has helped accelerate economic growth in the U.S. While the U.S. economy grew at a 2.9 percent annual rate since April 2017, faster government spending accounted for nearly half of the acceleration. An increase in defense spending was a major factor behind the growth, other factors included non-defense spending at the local and state levels as well as faster business investment and consumer spending. Source: Wall Street Journal  

General Motor’s is expanding its Maven carsharing platform to now reach 10 cities by the end of the year, according to the automaker.  The platform will now be made available in cities including in Baltimore, Boston, Washington, DC, Jersey City, Denver, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Previously, the service was being beta tested in Chicago, Detroit, and Ann Arbor, Michigan. Maven features a peer-to-peer offering that enables owners and eligible lessees to earn money by renting their personal Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, or Cadillac car or truck model year 2015 and newer to driving members. Source: Auto Rental News

California’s latest employment report is nothing short of astounding. The state’s unemployment rate, which topped 12 percent during the Great Recession a decade ago, declined to a record low 4.1 percent in September as employment rolls continued to expand, up 339,600 workers over the previous year.
Dan Walters in CALmatters.org
Ribbon Cuttings
Congratulations to Round Table Pizza on the new location!
Wednesday, October 31
12 - 1 p.m.
Networking Opportunities

AM Connect Networking Breakfast

Join us for our monthly membership breakfast this month at  GlowZone HB , sponsored by  Wavelengths Recovery . OCTA will provide and I-405 improvement project update. Everyone in attendance receives breakfast, a 20-second introduction, a place for marketing materials and an opportunity to network. Don't forget to represent your company by bringing a door prize you can raffle off! All attendees are entered to win the raffle prizes brought in by other business representatives.

Member Events
Tuesday, October 30
5 - 9 p.m.
Wednesday, October 31
4 - 8 p.m.
Wednesday, 10/31
5:30 - 8 p.m.
Thursday, November 1
9 - 11 a.m.
Thur-Fri, Nov. 1-2
Times vary
Thursday, November 1
8 - 11:55 p.m.
Saturday, November 3
9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Saturday, November 3
11:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Saturday, November 3
6 - 8 p.m.
Wednesday, November 7
11 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Thur-Sat, November 8-10
7 - 9 p.m.
Sunday, November 11
8 - 10 a.m.
Huntington Beach Chamber of Commerce | (714) 536-8888 | (714) 960-7654