Thursday, November 14, 2013

It's The Economy Stupid: Jobless Claims & Productivity

Jobless Claims UP, Productivity DOWN

 

More Americans than forecast filed applications for unemployment benefits last week, a sign that the labor market is making progress in fits and starts.  Jobless claims in the week ended Nov. 9 declined 2,000 to 339,000 from a revised 341,000 the week before that was higher than initially reported, the Labor Department said today in Washington. The median forecast of 51 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a drop to 330,000. Applications for five states were estimated because of the Veterans Day holiday-shortened week.  Companies, already running lean after the recession, are trying to determine the optimum level for their workforces as political gridlock in Washington prevents lawmakers from reaching a compromise for this fiscal year’s budget.  A pick-up in consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the economy, is needed to help drive growth and boost hiring in the fourth quarter.

 

The productivity of U.S. workers rose less than projected in the third quarter, showing employers are finding it difficult to boost efficiency.  The measure of employee output per hour increased at a 1.9 percent annualized rate, after a revised 1.8 percent gain in the prior three months that was smaller than previously estimated. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of 59 economists called for a 2.2 percent gain. Expenses per worker dropped at a 0.6 percent rate.   Employers will need to boost efficiency in a bid to bolster profits as consumer spending and business investment are having trouble gaining momentum. Nonetheless, businesses are finding it difficult to squeeze more from existing staff indicating hiring will need to pick up along with sales.

 

Economic Event

Period

Economic Survey

Actual Reported

Original Prior

Revised Prior

Initial Jobless Claims

Nov 9

330K

339K

336K

341K

Continuing Claims

Nov 2

2870K

2874K

2868K

2874K

Nonfarm Productivity

3Q P

2.2%

1.9%

2.3%

1.8%

Unit Labor Costs

3Q P

-0.1%

-0.6%

0.0%

0.5%

Trade Balance

Sep

-$39.0B

-$41.8B

-$38.8B

-$38.7B

 

John Broussard

Assistant State Treasurer

Chief Investment Officer

State of Louisiana

Department of the Treasury

225-342-0013

jbroussard@treasury.state.la.us

 

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