| US Jobless Claims: Auto-Industry Layoffs Are Cited |
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By Joseph Rebello Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--The number of U.S. workers filing first-time applications for unemployment benefits surged last week as automobile manufacturers reduced production because of slow sales, indicating the sluggish economy continues to hurt the jobs market. Initial jobless claims rose by 30,000 to 442,000 in the week that ended April 12, reversing the previous week's decline, the Labor Department said Thursday. The four-week moving average, which smoothes out weekly fluctuations, climbed to an 11-month high of 424,750. The numbers surprised Wall Street, which had expected an increase of just 10,000 initial claims, according to a consensus forecast of economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires and CNBC. A Labor Department spokesman attributed the increase to layoffs in the auto industry, whose three biggest manufacturers idled some factories because of slow sales. Those layoffs accounted for as much as half the increase in claims last week, the spokesman said. More than 2 million Americans have lost their jobs over the last two years after the economy sank into recession, and the war with Iraq has made businesses even more reluctant to hire workers, analysts say. Some economists say, however, that the end of the war will boost business confidence and economic growth in the second half of the year. The Labor Department said the number of workers drawing unemployment benefits for more than a week also rose in the week that ended April 5, the latest period for which the number is available. Continuing claims increased by 76,000 to 3,574,000. The unemployment rate for workers with unemployment insurance held steady at 2.8%. In all, 35 states reported a decrease in unadjusted initial claims for the week of April 5 while 18 reported an increase, the Labor Department said. Illinois reported the biggest increase, a gain of 5,779 that it attributed to layoffs in the construction, trade, service and manufacturing industries. Kentucky reported the biggest drop, saying claims fell by 1,569 because of fewer layoffs in the mining industry. The Labor Department revised its preliminary estimate of initial claims for the week of April 5, raising it by 7,000 to 412,000. The department routinely revises its initial estimates. |
It's bad economic policy from the White House. Demand management doesn't work. The president has never said anything good about the private technology sector (our growth engine), nor about new businesses and markets, although he has come around on saying good things about small business. He's a bad economic president, although I'm sure he and Karl Rove figure it won't be a big issue in 2004, because, at this time, the Rats have nothing better to offer. Plus, they figure token, ineffective tax cuts will shore up the base. And if it looks like an issue in 2004, they'll just implement huge increases in government spending to buy votes.
And yes, people have been saying that unemployment is a lagging indicator for the last two years. As long as policies don't change, it becomes a pretty good leading indicator, too.