Good morning, CFOs. Affordability and housing, healthcare and education costs in focus in WSJLI poll; Five Below’s CFO on its pricing strategy to attract consumers; companies that mine critical minerals are hiring retired generals as specialized experts.

In our latest WSJLI national poll, some 52% of respondents of a Jan. 27–28 survey said they are "not confident" they could find a home fitting their budget and needs in the next 12 months. That’s according to the online sample of 998 U.S. adults 18 and older, by TrueDot.ai, the AI-accelerated research platform.

And concerns about cost of living continue to dominate Americans’ views, particularly about how they can get ahead economically. The costs of housing, healthcare and education are among factors preventing upward mobility, the poll found, with 48% of Americans identifying cost-of-living expenses as the primary barrier to moving from middle class to wealthy.

In a related story, our reporter Jennifer Williams takes a look at how retailer Five Below is adjusting its pricing strategy to attract consumers looking for value. Retailers such as dollar-store chains have benefited from Americans’ search for discounts, even as some focus less on the $1 price point.

Lookout above? Five Below in particular is undergoing a shift under its new management, and as CFO Dan Sullivan tells it: “We believe it’s all about relative value,” he said. “And so we have the opportunity to go above $5 as long as we jam that item with value.”

Most of the company’s wares such as toys, games, party decorations and more sell for $5 or less. But lately, more price tags are pushing above that threshold. It is a significant shift for a value retailer whose executives describe the company as hardwired to keep prices at or below $5.

Many Americans have continued to spend, but many say they are feeling the squeeze after five years of persistent inflation and as consumers remain anxious about affordability and sluggish hiring.

Monday

Earnings: Palantir Technologies, Revvity, Simon Property Group, Teradyne, Tyson Foods, and Walt Disney

The Institute for Supply Management releases its Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index for January.

Tuesday

Earnings: Advanced Micro Devices, Amgen, Archer-Daniels-Midland, Ball Corp., Broadridge Financial Solutions, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Clorox, Corteva, Emerson Electric, Gartner, Hubbell, Illinois Tool Works, Jack Henry & Associates, Jacobs Solutions, Marathon Petroleum, Match Group, Merck, Mondelez International, PayPal Holdings, PepsiCo, Pfizer and Prudential Financial

The Bureau of Labor Statistics releases the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey.

Wednesday

Earnings: Aflac, Allstate, Alphabet, AvalonBay Communities, Arm Holdings, Boston Scientific, CME Group, Cognizant Technology Solutions, Crown Castle, Eli Lilly, Equifax, GE HealthCare Technologies, GSK, Johnson Controls International, Merck, Metlife, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Old Dominion Freight Line, O’Reilly Automotive, Phillips 66, PTC, Qualcomm, Stanley Black & Decker, Steris, T. Rowe Price Group, Uber Technologies, UBS Group and Yum Brands

The Institute for Supply Management releases its Services Purchasing Managers’ Index for January.

Thursday

Earnings: Amazon.com, Ares Management, Bristol Myers Squibb, Cigna, ConocoPhillips, Cummins, Digital Realty Trust, Equity Residential, Fortinet, Gen Digital, Huntington Ingalls Industries, Hershey, Intercontinental Exchange, KKR, Linde, Mettler-Toledo International, Microchip Technology, Molina Healthcare, Monolithic Power Systems, News Corp, Ralph Lauren, Shell, Snap-On and Tapestry

Friday

Earnings: Biogen, Cboe Global Markets, Centene and Philip Morris International

The Bureau of Labor Statistics releases the jobs report for January.

The University of Michigan releases its Consumer Sentiment survey for February.

Companies that mine critical minerals are hiring retired generals for their expertise and leadership, Jon Emont writes.

Western miners have added at least a dozen former American generals, colonels and admirals to boards or to senior leadership roles over the past year, hoping to tap the billions of dollars the Department of Defense is shelling out to rebuild domestic supply chains after China cut the U.S. off for much of last year.

Case in point: Almonty Industries, a North American company that mines tungsten in Europe and South Korea, picked up two retired American generals last year. Retired four-star Army Gen. Gustave Perna, a logistics expert, joined the company’s board in March and retired Army Brig. Gen. Steven Allen enlisted as chief operations officer in December.

📰 Other headlines

• The Silver Market Is Messed Up. These Buyers Are Feeling the Pain.
• The AI Boom Is Coming for Apple’s Profit Margins
• Exclusive: Trump Jokes About Suing Warsh if He Doesn’t Lower Interest Rates
• When the Last Local Bank in Town Turns to a Global Salad Company for Help
• KKR-Led Group Set to Buy Singapore Data-Center Firm Valued at Over $10 Billion
• Saying You Want to Shrink the Fed Is One Thing. Doing It Is Another.
• These Rural Americans Are Trying to Hold Back the Tide of AI
• How a Silicon Valley Startup Became a Crypto Lifeline for Venezuela
• China’s Xi, Now Alone Atop His Military, Is the Sole Voice in Tackling Taiwan
• Podcast: Is Cuba Next? Inside Washington’s Push for Regime Change

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The Wall Street Journal's CFO Journal offers corporate leaders and professionals CFO analysis, advice and commentary to make informed decisions. We cover topics including corporate tax, accounting, regulation, capital markets, management and strategy.

Follow us on X @WSJCFO. The WSJ CFO Journal Team comprises reporters Kristin Broughton, Mark Maurer and Jennifer Williams, and Bureau Chief Walden Siew.

You can reach us by replying to any newsletter, or email Walden at walden.siew@wsj.com.