Posted on 07/09/2009 5:41:02 AM PDT by MikeWUSAF
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- First-time claims for state unemployment benefits fell in the latest weekly data, after seasonal adjustment, while continuing claims hit a record high, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The number of initial claims in the week ending July 4 fell 52,000 to 565,000 - the lowest level since January - as the manufacturing layoffs, predominantly automotive, that had been expected have already occurred at some companies, according to the Labor Department, which added that some seasonally expected layoffs may come later or not at all. The four-week average of initial claims fell 10,000 to 606,000. For the week ending June 27, the number of Americans receiving state jobless benefits rose 159,000 to a record 6.88 million, more than double the level during the same period in the prior year. The four-week moving average of these continuing claims rose 12,000 to a record 6.77 million. The insured unemployment rate, which represents the portion of all workers covered by unemployment insurance who are collecting benefits, rose to 5.1% from 5%.
(Excerpt) Read more at marketwatch.com ...
Of course it MUST be due to all those jobs saved due to the “stimulus.” /s
Recession is over, the big O has done it. He’s beyond wonderful, he’s almost magical. He’s done what no man has done before. He can probably leap tall buildings in a single bound. (somebody .........slap me)
Whew! Thank goodness only 565,000 lost their jobs. I thought it was going to be 600,000. This is great news.
They are so in-the-bag for economic recovery via Obammie the Commies socialist spending it is nauseating.
I skip over their absurd “spin” stories and go right to the comments, where I have unearthed mines full of good information.
Seriously, troll the comments on MW articles, FReepers, if you want to learn a lot about economics and finances.
Ignore the stories.
Thats because people are not applying for benefits anymore or because they have run out of benefits.
Do we know what the unemployment rate is now?
They're just making this as rosy as they can. If GW Bush were president, they'd have all kinds of inflated projections and say that he was purposely driving up unemployment to make himself rich.
5%. Try telling that to people in California and Michigan.
The title said — Initial jobless claims lowest since January
—
Ummmm..., yeah! At some point, you eventually arrive at the level of unemployment where you’ve kicked almost everyone out of work that you can... :-)
Thats how they are spinning it. 40 thousnad less than they expected.
I figure they expect on the high side so they can say things are less stinky than projected.
You are spot on!
Some MarketWatch comments:
“Meanwhile, the latest sales reports of leading retailers look nasty indeed — massive declines across the board. With 70% of the U.S. GDP generated by (mindless, senseless) consumer borrowing and spending, those phoney “green shoots” and that “3rd Quarter pick-up” of the comatose economy remain a pipe dream.”
“Air France CEO said this morning that the situation is as bad as it’s ever been. No green shoots whatsoever. Cargo has dropped. Business class empty.”
“And what about expected layoffs from state and local governments that can no longer add to their employment roles because they have spent every nickel they had or could borrow (i.e. California and every other state and city in the country). Most of these entities (as well as school districts, etc.) have no yet started to really layoffs employees and in fact many have increased as part of the stimulus.”
“Just more bad news trying to be spun as positive.
So I should be happy that over half a million people did one of the following:
1. Got laid off
2. Got laid off and used up all their severance pay (for those lucky enough to get it)
3. Got laid off and tired of living off their savings with no money coming in
4. Finally got awarded unemployment benefits after fighting with the employer that claims the worker was fired for “lack of performance”.
Yea, these numbers a real party starter alright.”
I noticed that it was 2 degrees cooler this morning than it was at the same time yesterday...logically, I concluded that summer must be over.
Nevermind all the bad indicators, one data point that is not QUITE as catastrophic is all we need for HopenChange!
But how many state and county offices were closed on the 3rd for the 4th of July weekend - thus lowering the claims for that week.
Let’s see what happens in the next 4 weeks. The second fiscal quarter just ended June 30. As the bean counters tally the damage, layoffs may pick up pace again.
Duh, there’s a slowing of layoffs because you can’t stay in buisness with no help. The second wave will be from massive buisness failures.
Stuart Varney on Fox News actually telling it like it is. He says anybody saying these #’s are good is grasping at straws.
Does anyone think dems might, just might, be willing to cheat on the numbers? Not that they’re not always totally upstanding and honest...
The real rate is about 15%.
Ummm, you bought the sizzle and there ain't no steak.
16.8% U-6 classification - Total unemployed, plus all marginally attached
workers, plus total employed part time for
economic reasons, as a percent of the civilian
labor force plus all marginally attached workers.
Amazing that they’re allowed to get away with citing “the insured unemployment rate” of 5.1% when the enemployment rate is about 10%.
That is purely a device to confuse people.
Given the lying nature of this administration, I was wondering how long it was going to take before they started fudging the numbers in their favor.
... claims for state unemployment insurance fell 52,000 to a much lower-than-expected seasonally adjusted 565,000 in the week ended July 4 from 617,000 the prior week, the Labor Department said.
It was the lowest reading since January.
Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast claims to drop to 605,000 from a previously reported 614,000.
... in a sign of ongoing employment weakness, so-called continued claims of people still on jobless aid after an initial week of benefits rose by 159,000 to a record 6.883 million in the week ending June 27, the latest for which data is available.http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090709/bs_nm/us_usa_economy_jobless_1
ONLY 565,000 people lost jobs.
The term ‘after seasonal adjustments’ is the operative term here. The REAL number was bad, but they used the fact that auto workers who are usually laid off about now as plants retool were already laid off two months ago to make the ‘adjusted’ number look not so bad.
If Bush’s labor dept tried these tricks he would be abused by the MSM for massaging the numbers.
You mean, "after we tweaked the numbers."
--
You are correct that the unemployment figure is closer to 20%
The few jobs funded by ARRA money will all go away in 2 years.
Decline reflects people no longer eligible for benefits and dropping off the map. In a related story, small businesses up 2%. This means people who couldn’t find a job are mowing lawns, doing handyman jobs, doing anything they can to get some work. Not gainfully employed.
Hope you all know that the big change is when the still unemployed come off the numbers because their time has run out. Once they are off the books, the democrats will be saying, see it is getting better out there, not so may unemployed as before.........
Figures can lie, liars use figures = Democrats lie period!
to read later
Comrade Obama failed to inform his mindless, idiot supporters that the “HOPE & CHANGE” was from the perspective of ENEMIES like Russia, Chavez, the Castro brothers, Iran, the ChiComs, etc, etc.
Unemployment offices were closed last Friday, making it impossible to file claims.
wow. He’s at -8 now? Was -5 last I checked and seems like it was -3 only a moment ago.
WASHINGTON – The number of newly laid-off workers filing initial claims for jobless benefits last week fell to lowest level since early January, largely due to changes in the timing of auto industry layoffs.
Continuing claims, meanwhile, unexpectedly jumped to a record-high. While layoffs are slowing, unemployed workers are having a difficult time finding new jobs. The unemployment rate rose to 9.5 percent last month and is expected to top 10 percent by the end of this year.
As others on this thread have said - if G W Bush were still president, which paragraph would be the lead?
ping
When 100% of the country is out of work, the MSM will report it as initial unemployment claims fall to zero.
The non-seasonally adjusted figure increased by about 17,000 to 577,506 initial claims.
Obama and company taking to cooking the books on the real numbers. Desperation startin to set in an Economic Camp Obama
BY the end of 2009 the unemployment rate will exceed 12 percent.
All FReepers should go to the Wiki page for “Unemployment” in the US.
Study the U1 through U6 metrics.
When lefties try to claim unemployment is not that bad, explain that:
1. The numbers are always announced low and revised silently upward a few weeks later.
2. The numbers reflect the U1 (as MikeWUSAF) was stating. If you look at the U6, we are at over 16% unemployment. OK, so if you don't buy in to the “under-employed” metric, the U5 is solid and, by it, we are at over 14% unemployment.
3. Unemployment has a snowball effect. Once it starts, it increases as previous worker/buyers become unworkers/nonbuyers, thus affecting other businesses and industries. It is only after it reaches a critical mass AND AFTER THE ECONOMY HAS TURNED AROUND, does employment start to pick up. RE-employment is a lagging indicator, and if we are still trying to “talk up” the “good news” of half a million people EVERY MONTH losing their jobs, we are a long, long way away from employment turning around.
I'm more optimistic due to the government cooking the books, I say 11.5%
Jobless claims ROSE. The “seasonal adjustment” lowered the headline number. It’s all there in the data.
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