A Straw to Grasp

2023 gathering in Dolores Park (Chron)

When I hold losing stocks, I often seize upon any positive bit of news to justify holding on (and rationalizing my poor buy decision). Here's a straw for die-hard San Francisco believers to grasp:

San Francisco’s pandemic exodus is over, and its population grew slightly last year, new census data shows.

The city’s population increased to an estimated 808,988 residents as of July 2023, up 0.15% from the prior year’s revised 807,774, according to census data released late Wednesday. It remains far below its pre-pandemic level, down nearly 65,000 people or an estimated 7.4% compared to April 2020, after seeing some of the heaviest losses in the country.

Going up by a thousand people hardly signifies a turnaround--or even a bottoming out--of San Francisco, especially in the face of macro data:

There are other signs that the city is still struggling: Apartment rents are still below 2019 levels, making San Francisco an anomaly. Retailers are still shuttering downtown, citing lack of foot traffic. A record number of vacant offices are listed for lease.

The artificial-intelligence hiring boom isn't broad enough to offset the losses in non-AI tech, retail, finance, and travel and leisure, but hope springs eternal.