The June employment report was just released by the Labor Department. Here’s what the data showed:
* Total nonfarm payrolls fell by 467,000, That was much worse than the forecast for a reading of -367,000. Net revisions to the past couple of months lowered the job loss tally by 8,000. Still, job losses were widespread in June. Construction employment dropped 79,000, manufacturing employment fell 136,000, and service-sector employment fell by 244,000. Worth noting: Government employment is also fading fast. The sector fired 52,000 people, the worst showing since July 2007.
* The unemployment rate rose to 9.5% from 9.4% in May. That was slightly better than the average forecast for a reading of 9.6%, but still the worst reading going all the way back to August 1983 (a tie).
* Average hourly earnings were a disappointment. They were unchanged, against forecasts for a reading of +0.1% and a May reading of +0.2%. That was the worst number since February 2004. Average weekly hours worked dipped again to 33 from 33.1. That’s the lowest reading in the history of the data series, which goes back to 1964.
* In other employment data, initial jobless claims were right in line this week — 614,000 vs. a forecast for 615,000 and a previous reading of 630,000. Continuing claims dipped to 6.702 million from 6.755 million a week earlier. That as a big better than forecast.
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Nice report.
The one thing that ticks me off, is that there is not a caveat attached to the “good” news of fewer continuing claims:
Reality is that people are reaching the end of their unemployment AND the extensions.
This isn’t “good” news, it is devastating. We have to realize what this means: millions more with NO money, NO cash, NO ability to pay bills, buy things or survive.
And that isn’t “good” in any world.
Hi, Mike. I’m a “C.O. ETF Trader” subscriber. I was wondering why a double inverse financial ETF as opposed to a triple? Fyi: I did read Ron Rowland’s “Understanding Leveraged ETFs” sent out this morning. Thanks.
Mike, What is your opinion of Martin’s new service that includes recos from the foundation. I’d be interested in hearing your opinions.While you have been wrong sometimes about timing issues, so have I and obviously many others. Besides I find you a sensible and obviously astute guy. You don’t mind fessing when your predictions are off timing wise. My feeling is the foundation will help but only when markets aren’t moving sideways. I think they are of more assistance in the long run than in the short or intermediate term
I agree. People have fallen off the radar because they have exhausted all benefits. I know people who have been unemployed for almost two years now and have long since exhausted all their UI benefits. I also know people, who were laid off last fall, who have taken jobs well below their education and skill levels. Fact is, a lot of us are working at jobs that earn 50%+ less than what we were making last year. Another case of needing to look behind the numbers for the real picture. I’m sick of these meaningless numbers games. There is nothing good in the unemployment numbers, and if continuing claims fall slightly, it is not necessarily because people are finding great jobs.
Another thing, the ridiculous weekly job numbers this coming week (ridiculous, because weekly reporting is too much and is meaningless), will probably show less claims because this was a holiday weekend. Also, in Arizona, they hadn’t passed their budget last week, so I’m not sure if that affected the processing of claims last week. They need to stop reporting numbers so frequently. One week does not a trend make. I’m sick of it myself.
Your anger is well founded. The numbers are rigged and so are the current econmic solutions being used to promote “stimulus”. I recently took 2 trillion dollars and divided it by 200 million taxpayers. The 2 trillion is the stimulus and tarp funds. I think the answer is approximately 11,000 dollars per American taxpayer to pay for these bailouts and stimulus. For a married couple a mere refund to them would create almost 22,000 dollars instead of ” Laundering that money thru political favorites “Someone check my math, but why not give us the money. Or do we all have to run out and get nursing and M.D. degrees just to survive. Obama’s new health and environment bills will benefit very few Americans and I am tired of being reeducated and told I need to be retrained every 5 years. Nuriel Roubini is right. Obama’s plans will fail because they are crafted by those ( Larry Summers, Tim Geitner, and friends ) who have deep ties to Wall Steet and will begin receiving huge speaking fees from the Wall Street elite as soon as their terms are over. Bush’s Treasury guy was the same and don’t forget to count Greenspan and Bernanke in this crowd. Roubini is one of few noted academics and economists willing to speak out and call this what it is. The plan is morally constructed to fail as it serves the best interests of Wall Street first and foremost, and not the American economy or our citizens.