The number of new unemployment claims this week came in at 370,000, below the economists’ expectations of 365,000. It’s unchanged:
New U.S. claims for unemployment benefits were unchanged last week, according to government data on Thursday that will do little to ease concerns about a recent slowdown in jobs growth.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits held steady at a seasonally adjusted 370,000, the Labor Department said.
The prior week’s figure was revised up to 370,000 from the previously reported 367,000.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims falling to 365,000 last week. The four-week moving average for new claims, considered a better measure of labor market trends, fell 4,750 to 375,000.
“We are really not showing much momentum in the labor market at this time,” said Sean Incremona, an economist at 4Cast in New York.
Unchanged sounds pretty good but, actually, it’s horrible. Anybody who tries to portray it as anything else should be ashamed of themselves.
See here for some perspective on where we are relative to where we should be.
Recovery Summer Mark III. (I liked Mark II the best, with Gillan and Lord, personally. Wait, I think I’m getting my Marks confused….)
If this turns into a decades-long stagnation, the long-term effect on this generation of young people entering the workforce is likely to be very bad.
If this turns into a decades-long stagnation, the long-term effect on this generation of young people entering the workforce is likely to be very bad.
It isn’t exactly a picnic for us middle-aged folks either.
@ Andy
A decade of stagnation is, I think, something we can all agree should be avoided. We’ve seen the consequences twenty-plus years of slow deleveraging have had on Japan.