Need to know…

• Small Business Confidence Hits a 2.5 Year Low. U.S. small business sentiment tumbled to its lowest level in more than two and a half years in November, according to the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB). Owners grew very pessimistic about business conditions over the next six months. The NFIB blamed the November 6 election for the sharp erosion in confidence, with Superstorm Sandy also playing a limited role.

• Obama Tax Plan Would Hit Small Business. The Joint Committee on Taxation reports that President Obama’s plan to increase taxes on top earners would have only a small impact on the nation’s economy, however, small business owners would face a tax hike. It “would hit about 940,000 people who report business income on their individual or household returns ... That’s only 3.5% of the people who report business income, but those business owners are projected to earn 53% of the $1.3 trillion in business income that will be reported on individual returns next year.”

• Investors Forced to Move Assets in Preparation for Fiscal Cliff. Many investors are taking preemptive action as lawmakers continue to struggle to agree on a plan to avert the fiscal cliff. Americans are moving to sell investment homes, off-load stocks, expand charitable donations, and establish tax-sheltering gifts before the end of the year. The maximum tax rate on long-term investment earnings would rise from 15% to 21.2% in the absence of a deal. In addition, the higher income earners will face a new 3.8% surcharge on investment income to help fund implementation of the 2010 health-care law.

• United States, EU Considering Free Trade Pact. The Associated Press reports this morning that “U.S. and European officials are contemplating ... joining together in what could be the world’s largest free trade pact in an attempt to boost their struggling economies.” The Chamber is cited saying a deal could add $180 billion to the U.S. and EU economies over five years, with the U.S. seeing larger gains than the EU. Peter Chase, the Chamber’s vice president for Europe, said, “The opportunity is there. It is golden. We should take it.”

Worth the read…

• Cuts Looming, No Answer in Sight for Sequestration – Politico
• States Cannot Do Partial Medicaid Expansion, Says Obama Administration – The Hill
• China Nabs Airplanes and Batteries in Latest U.S. Shopping – Businessweek
• Profit in Season for Christmas-Theme Businesses – USA Today
• Stressed Entrepreneurs Are Still Happier than Other Workers – Fox Business
• A Small Business Owner Should Incorporate Their Business – Small Business Trends
• In 2013, A Search for Entrepreneurship Where It Hasn’t Traditionally Been Found – Washington Post
• U.S. Treasury Exits AIG with Bailout Profit of $22.7 Billion – Reuters
• ‘Black Friday’ Success Prompts Retail Name Game – USA Today
• Unbreaking American Innovation: Three Ways to Reinvent Reinvention – Forbes
• How to Turn Your Startup into the Next Campus Craze – Entrepreneur