Actually a net 54,000 were created in the U.S. in May, but much fewer than expected/hoped for. Government jobs are being hacked off all over the country: Here's the top of the AP story:
Few jobs added in May; unemployment up to 9.1 pct
CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER,AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Employers in May added the fewest jobs in eight months, and the unemployment rate inched up to 9.1 percent. The weakening job market raised concerns about an economy hampered by gas prices and the Japanese nuclear disaster.
The key question is whether the meager 54,000 jobs added last month mark a temporary setback or are evidence of a more chronic problem. That total is far lower than the previous three months' average of 220,000 new jobs per month.
Private companies hired only 83,000 new workers in May — the fewest in nearly a year.
Stocks on Wall Street fell for the third straight day. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 76 points in late-morning trading. Broader indexes also dropped.
Among the deepest job cuts were in local governments, which cut 28,000 jobs last month, the most since November. Nearly 18,000 of those jobs were in education. Cities and counties have cut jobs for 22 straight months and have shed 446,000 positions since September 2008.
I think the uncertainty, much of it, is tied to the debt default scare going on in Congress. There's already enough fear out there and Congress should not be adding to the problem by threatening a debt default.
This also raises the question of how fast you want to cut government to get to a balanced budget. Going too fast could slow the economy even more. Sure, markets liked balanced budget and good fiscal policy, but Europe is on an austerity path and things are sluggish there, and now the U.S. appears to be on one.
Will it darken the entire economic picture, at least for a few months or even years. I think it would help if both political sides reached a compromise fast on a path out of debt and stabilized the mood.
But that won't win you a primary back home.
A novice's take on the local, state and national political scenes
Me
David Allen
- Politics 101
- All politics is local -Tip O'Neil
2 comments:
You haven't been reading or listening to the right People!
First the economic stimulus money is drying up - thats alot of what kept things propped up in the first place!
Second, the housing crisis is nowhere complete - prices continue to fall with no new buyers stepping up! The sellers are getting killed often below their original cost! (It actually might be a deflationary signal people wanting for the real bottom!)
Third it is also the end of QE2!
(Some are prediciting a QE3 - but Japan did the exact same thing!)
Fourth, there is alot of things unknown about the direction of the Country! ex. Obamacare, medicaid, etc.(how it will effect and what it is going to cost businesses and States).
Fifth, taxes - who is going to pay more and how much?
Lastly, the debt - both personally (as individuals) and as a country!
(There have been shots fired across our bow that if the US doesn't get its fiscal house in order we will lose our perfect credit rating! You could probably say that doesn't matter - but you might just find out that in reality it DOES!)
Btw:
The new graph for long term unemployment -
shows people drawing for just under 40 weeks! (by far nothing on that chart or in the past compares with those figures since 2008!)
Probably not a good sign for the economy and probably another example of how we are becoming a Socialist Society!
Post a Comment