From the Department of Labor press release:
In the week ending Sept. 6, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 422,000, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 419,000. The 4-week moving average was 407,250, an increase of 4,500 from the previous week's revised average of 402,750.
So essentially we're back where we were in early July, before the child credit tax checks were cut and mailed. But prosperity is just around the corner!
Unfortunately, the second half of the DOL press release sounds another dire warning: Continued claims are way up as well.
The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending Aug. 30 was 3,672,000, an increase of 61,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 3,611,000. The 4-week moving average was 3,636,750, an increase of 11,000 from the preceding week's revised average of 3,625,750.
In fact, while new claims have just increased sharply over the past two weeks, continued claims have been rising since early August:
Week ending:
August 9: +41,000
August 16: +26,000
August 23: +23,000
August 30: +61,000
How long will trend continue, and how great an effect does it have on this trend as well?
Posted by MB Williams at September 11, 2003 09:56 AM | TrackBackJust what exactly is supposed to halt/reverse this trend ?
Posted by: Patrick (G) at September 11, 2003 03:44 PMAn extensive public jobs program? Increased funding for small businesses and research and development?
I don't think it's tax cuts for the rich.
Posted by: MB at September 11, 2003 07:22 PMIn other words: nothing that this president is likely to do is going to turn around the employment situation (the most important aspect of the economy). So we can expect the economy to deteriorate until at least sometime in 2005/2006.
Now that the economic-stimulus cupboard is bare (aside from the Iraq/Afghanistan war, perhaps), isn't it likely that the deterioration will accelerate ?
Posted by: Patrick (G) at September 12, 2003 10:00 AMThe Halliburton War has sated the great Halliburton. Well OK, may be not for long, but the $87B will at least mute the greed temporarily. Who cares about the unemployed - they're just lazy people. I know because Rush said so, and Fox News confirmed it.
Posted by: IB at September 13, 2003 11:46 AM