unemployment
Posted at 11:52am on Jul. 3, 2008 Ah, bias
By Neil Stevens
The AP today starts a report today beating the drums of doom:
Employers cut payrolls by 62,000 in June, the sixth straight month of nationwide job losses, underscoring the economy's fragile state. The unemployment rate held steady at 5.5 percent.
Do you think that under a Democrat, the reporting would have been the other way around, perhaps going like so?
The unemployment rate held steady in June, remaining at 5.5 percent, underscoring the economy's resilience against reports that employers cut payrolls by 62,000, marking the sixth straight month of recorded losses.
Maybe.
Posted at 9:35am on Jun. 18, 2008 A morning of strange admissions from the Michigan Left
By RightMichigan.com
Cross-posted on Right Michigan at www.RightMichigan.com.
Fewer taxes equals more jobs. It's not rocket science and even the current crop of Democrats in Lansing, the biggest tax hikers in the state's history regularly admit it these days. Including today. They just approved tax breaks and credits for a handful of projects the administration proudly claims will "create" 3,900 jobs. (The list of projects and tax breaks is available HERE.)
Posted in alternative energy | Breaking News | Detroit | Michigan | Tax Hikes | unemployment | www.RightMichigan.com — Comments (0) / Email this page » / Read More »
Posted at 9:38am on Jun. 6, 2008 A Bad Employment Report, the European Central Bank, and a Sharp Oil Rally [Updated]
Lots of news this morning
By blackhedd
It's a very busy morning as financial markets digest a welter of new information. The headline you'll have screamed at you all day is that the US unemployment rate jumped sharply from 5.0% to 5.5%.
The unemployment rate is a number that matters in terms of politics and very little else. The useful number that economists and markets actually watch is the total number of jobs.
According the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics, the initial reading on actual employment during the month of May is that 49,000 US jobs were lost. This is a bad number, but it's not as bad as expected. (The survey of economists showed a wider variance than usual this month, but the average was about -60,000.)
Accordingly, market reaction is muted this morning. The stock market will probably drop 100 or so points, retracing yesterday's rally. Bonds rose modestly on the news.
Update: At 10:30am EDT, the New York stock market is down well over 200 points, bonds are mildly higher across the curve, and crude oil is now an incredible 10% more expensive than it was yesterday.
Keep reading...
Posted in BLS | Economy | unemployment — Comments (4)/ Email this page » / Read More »
Posted at 10:33am on Jan. 4, 2008 Weak Employment Numbers from the Department of Labor
Sectoral Rotation in December
By blackhedd
A much-anticipated report from the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows that employment in the US added 18,000 new jobs last month. This was far less than the consensus estimate of private economists surveyed by news organizations.
The markets have been waiting for this report for several weeks, as the usual holiday-season paucity of news and trading activity gave them little else to focus on. But the news comes as a slug in the gut. It touched off an instantaneous, rocket-propelled rally in the US Treasury market. As I write this (9:10am EST), the 10-year note is up 14/32, and its yield is down to 3.84%.
More...
Posted in Economy | Interest rates | unemployment — Comments (14)/ Email this page » / Read More »
Posted at 11:20am on Dec. 26, 2007 The Housing Crisis and Illegal Immigration
By blackhedd
Submitted for your consideration: is the weakness in the housing/construction industries reducing illegal immigration?
This is a connection I haven't seen anyone else make. Instead, the question people are asking is: why isn't unemployment a whole lot worse than it is?
The recently-departed US bubble in residential and commercial real-estate prices understandably touched off a huge boom in overbuilding in many regions of the country. And this activity created a lot of (real) economic activity and growth, just as the Internet bubble did ten years ago.
Posted in Economy | housing | illegal immigration | unemployment — Comments (20) / Email this page » / Read More »
Posted at 10:40am on Dec. 7, 2007 Nice-looking Numbers from the Labor Department
Economy reportedly adds 94,000 jobs in November
By blackhedd
The Bureau of Labor Statistics have released their monthly snapshot of employment conditions for November, and it surprised on the upside. Expectations were for the economy to have added 70,000 new jobs last month, but the number came in at 94,000.
The bond market is selling off on this news, with the short end of the yield curve down slightly and the middle and long-end up considerably. The 10-year note has now fallen to yield nearly 4.10%, as opposed to an incredibly strong 3.92% several days ago.
More analysis below the fold...
Posted in Economy | unemployment — Comments (13)/ Email this page » / Read More »
