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  • October Jobs Report: Unemployment now at 9.0 Percent

    The US economy added 80,000 jobs in October, according to the latest numbers released by the Department of Labor . The unemployment rate dipped down slightly, to 9.0 percent. The professional and business services and leisure and hospitality sectors led the job growth, while government employment continued to decline. Perhaps the most positive news from the report is that the number of long-term unemployed, those out of work for 27 weeks or more, dropped by 366,000 over the month. Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : Here are some of the key data from other areas we like to track in the monthly jobs report: The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) decreased by 374,000 to 8.9 million in October. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. In October, 2.6 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, about the same as a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 967,000 discouraged workers in October, a decrease of 252,000 from a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.6 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in October had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. Read the full report from the BLS here .

  • Infographic: Spending in America

    If you have yet to peruse the data from the Department of Labor 's latest consumer spending survey , Arjaan de Raaf is going to save you a lot of time. Here is de Raaf's infographic, from Infographic List , showing how Americans spent their money last year: Click here for the full size version of the infographic. (H/t Barry Ritholtz) What jumps out at you in the above infographic? Are you surprised at how much, or how little, Americans spend in a particular area? Is there anything that strikes you as a problem for the overall economy?

  • Atlanta Fed Macroblog: Charting Estimated Jobs Recovery

    On the heels of the September good-but-not-good-enough jobs report, David Altig --senior vice president and research director at the Atlanta Fed --charts how long it will take for the US economy to recover all the jobs lost since the start of the recession: The chart is from the Atlanta Fed's Macroblog , where Altig writes: Payroll employment growth has averaged about 110,000 jobs a month since February 2010, the jobs low point associated with the crisis and recession. This growth level compares, unfavorably, with the 158,000 jobs added per month during the last jobs recovery period from August 2003 (the low point following the 2001 recession) through November 2007 (the month before the recent recession began). One hundred and ten thousand jobs a month compares favorably, however, to the 96,000 job creation pace so far this year. Are these sorts of differences material? If the economy can find its way to creating jobs at the same rate as the last recovery—which nobody remembers as particularly off-the-chart spectacular—we would be back to the prerecession level of overall employment by spring 2015. If, on the other hand, we can only eke out the sub-100k pace we've seen this year, that date moves out to 2017. Altig goes on to point out that this chart is for the number of jobs, and not for the unemployment rate. With the slowest jobs recovery rate of the above chart,the unemployment rate would actually get higher, according to Altig's estimates. Read the full post here .

  • Over 100,000 Jobs Added in September, Unemployment Rate Remains at 9.1%

    Once again we have a jobs report from the Department of Labor where the unemployment remains unchanged. The unemployment rate remains at 9.1%, but in September, unlike in August, the economy did add jobs. Government employment went down again, but 103,000 more jobs were added in the private sector than were lost in the public sector. Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : Here are some of the key data from other areas we like to track in the monthly jobs report: The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) rose to 9.3 million in September. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. In September, about 2.5 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, about the same as a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 1.0 million discouraged workers in September, down by 172,000 from a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.5 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in September had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. Read the full report from the BLS here .

  • July Jobs Report: Unemployment Rate 9.1%, Small Job Gains in Private Sector Nearly Matched by Losses in Public Sector

    The unemployment rate has edged back down to 9.1%, as the US economy gained 117,000 as the US economy jobs in May, according to the latest report from the Department of Labor . The private sectors continues to add jobs. Notably, health care, retail trade, manufacturing, and mining led the way in hiring, while the public sector continued to lose jobs. Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : Here are some of the key data from other areas we like to track in the monthly jobs report: The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) was about unchanged in July at 8.4 million. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. In July, 2.8 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, little changed from a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 1.1 million discouraged workers in July, about the same as a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.7 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in July had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. Read the full report from the BLS here .

  • June Jobs Report and an Estimate on How Many Jobs are Needed to Keep the Unemployment Rate from Getting Higher

    The news of the unemployment rate going up yet again in June was a popular--though not popular , if you catch our drift--topic over the weekend. We were late in getting to the Department of Labor 's official report, so we'll share it now. In short, unemployment rate has rose slightly to 9.2%. The US economy managed to add only 18,000 jobs during the month. Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : Here are some of the key data from other areas we like to track in the monthly jobs report: The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) was essentially unchanged in June at 8.6 million. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. In June, 2.7 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, about the same as a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 982,000 discouraged workers in June, down by 225,000 from a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.7 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in June had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. Read the full report from the BLS here . So 18,000 jobs is clearly not enough to keep up with the population growth. How many jobs would we need to simply keep the unemployment rate where it is? Bill McBride , the blogger known as Calculated Risk , does the math and estimates it will take between 95,000 and 187,000 new jobs. Read the full post here .

  • BLS Jobs Report: Unemployment at 9.1%

    The unemployment rate has edged up slightly to 9.1%, as the US economy only added 54,000 jobs in May, according to the latest report from the Department of Labor . There were some more signs of growth in some sectors--namely professional and business services, health care, and mining. In most other private sectors, employment was flat. It is in the government sector that jobs are still being lost. Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : Here are some of the key data from other areas we like to track in the monthly jobs report: The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) was essentially unchanged in May at 8.5 million. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. In May, 2.2 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, about the same as a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 822,000 discouraged workers in May, a decrease of 261,000 from a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.4 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in May had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. Read the full report from the BLS here .

  • Economy Added More Jobs in April

    The US economy continues to add jobs. "Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 244,000 in April," according to the latest report from the Department of Labor . Despite the increase in jobs, the unemployment rate rose slightly, and is now at 9.0% (up from 8.8% at the end of March). Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : Here are some of the key data from other areas we like to track in the monthly jobs report: The number of persons unemployed for less than 5 weeks increased by 242,000 in April. The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks and over) declined by 283,000 to 5.8 million; their share of unemployment declined to 43.4 percent. The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) was little changed over the month, at 8.6 million. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. In April, 2.5 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, about the same as a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Read the full report from the BLS here .

  • March Jobs Report: Unemployment Rate Continues to Decline Slowly

    The US economy added 216,000 jobs in February, and the unemployment rate dropped slightly to 8.8% according to the latest report from the Department of Labor . Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : The number of jobs continued to tick up in most private sector fields, while local government jobs continues to fall. The jobless rate has now fallen a full percentage point since November. Here are some of the key data from other areas we like to track in the monthly jobs report: The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) was little changed in March, at 8.4 million. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. In March, 2.4 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, up slightly from a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 921,000 discouraged workers in March, little changed from a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.5 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in March had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. Read the full report from the BLS here .

  • February Jobs Report: 192,000 Jobs Added

    The US economy added 192,000 jobs in February, and the unemployment rate dropped to 8.9% according to the latest report from the Department of Labor . Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : The economy has created, on average, 106,000 jobs per month since February 2010. Here are some of the key data from other areas we like to track in the monthly jobs report: The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involun- tary part-time workers) was essentially unchanged at 8.3 million in February. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. In February, 2.7 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, up from 2.5 million a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 1.0 million discouraged workers in February, a decrease of 184,000 from a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.7 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in February had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. Read the full report from the BLS here .

  • Unemployment Rate Drops in January

    The US economy added a mere 36,000 jobs, but the unemployment rate dropped to 9.0% in January, according to the latest report from the Department of Labor . Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : The manufacturing sector had a relatively good month, adding 49,000 jobs. Retail added 28,000 jobs. Meanwhile, construction, and transportation and warehousing employment dropped during the month. Here are some of the key data from other areas we like to track in the monthly jobs report: The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involun- tary part-time workers) declined from 8.9 to 8.4 million in January. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. In January, 2.8 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, up from 2.5 million a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 1.0 million discouraged workers in January, about the same as a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.8 million persons marginally attached to the labor force had not searched for work in the 4 weeks pre- ceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. Read the full report from the BLS here .

  • Few Jobs Gained in November, Unemployment Rises to 9.8%

    The unemployment rate went up to 9.8% in November, as retail shed jobs, according to the latest report from the Department of Labor . The economy as a whole gained 39,000 jobs. Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : Here are some of the key data from other areas we like to track in the monthly jobs report: The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) was little changed over the month at 9.0 million. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. About 2.5 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force in November, up from 2.3 million a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 1.3 million discouraged workers in November, an increase of 421,000 from a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.2 million persons marginally attached to the labor force had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. Read the full report from the BLS here .

  • Unemployment: 54,000 More Jobs Lost in August

    The official number of unemployed workers in the US is at 14.9 million, as the economy shed another 54,000 total jobs in August, according to the latest report from the Department of Labor . The national unemployment rate is now at 9.6%. Private employers hired an additional 67,000 workers last month, but those numbers were offset by more temporary government jobs ending. Here's a look at the unemployment trends from the Bureau of Labor Statistics : In some of the other areas we like to track from the monthly jobs report: About 2.4 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force in August, little changed from a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 1.1 million discouraged workers in August, an increase of 352,000 from a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.3 million persons marginally attached to the labor force had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. Read the full report from the BLS here .

  • Jobless Claims Rise

    The Labor Department will release monthly unemployment data tomorrow. But there were some bad figures released today on jobless claims. From the Labor Department's news release: In the week ending July 31, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 479,000, an increase of 19,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 460,000. The 4-week moving average was 458,500, an increase of 5,250 from the previous week's revised average of 453,250. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 3.6 percent for the week ending July 24, unchanged from the prior week's unrevised rate of 3.6 percent. Bloomberg 's Bob Willis said the increase was "unexpected" : Economists forecast claims would fall to 455,000, according to the median of 43 projections. Estimates ranged from 444,000 to 470,000. The government revised the prior week's total to 460,000 from a previously reported 457,000. There were no special factors influencing last week's report, a Labor Department spokesman told reporters are the figures were being distributed. The timing of auto plant retooling shutdowns, which caused claims to gyrate last month, are probably no longer affecting the data, he said. The four-week moving average of claims, a less-volatile measure, increased to 458,500 last week from 453,250, today's report showed. Read the Labor Department's report here .

  • BLS: Real Wages Rose in May

    Unemployment numbers continue to look bad, as the Department of Labor yesterday reported that unemployment insurance claims rose slightly last week . For those people who do have jobs, real wages have gone up, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics . Real average hourly earnings went up 0.5 percent (seasonally adjusted) from April to May, while real average weekly hours rose 0.8 percent. One key factor: the Consumer Price Index declined 0.2 percent . Here's a look at the trend in real wages over the last year: Read the report from the BLS here .
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