10.14.2004
Jobless Claims Jump
More poor economic news. Not exactly unexpected or particularly bad news, but a sign that things aren't going so well, for sure. Funny, the story comes from FoxNews. I guess they got tired of posting all the bad news about themselves and their personnel long enough to post something pertinent:
Initial jobless claims rose 15,000 from an upwardly revised 337,000 in the prior week, the Labor Department said. Economists forecast a climb to 340,000 from the originally reported 335,000 in the week ended Oct. 2.
The closely watched four-week moving average of claims, which irons out week-to-week volatility, rose for the fifth straight week, climbing to 353,000 in the week ended Oct. 9 from an upwardly revised 349,000 in the previous week.
The moving average was at its highest since 355,500 in the week ended Feb. 28.
There were no special factors to explain the rise in new claims, but evidence suggests data has been more volatile than usual in recent weeks because of seasonal adjustment factors, a Labor Department analyst said.
Now, I only work in retail, but it seems to me that as we get closer to the Holidays most places start hiring more help, not less. So the claims should, perhaps hold steady, if not go down. I can say that at my worklplace, we are steadily hiring now, to help for the Christmas season. We're hiring at least 12 people, weekly, for the 6 weeks heading into Christmas. Granted, some of those people will be let go at the end of the season(and some will leave before then, because they can't take the workload), but I certainly don't see how this type of news can be perceived as "positive."
Initial jobless claims rose 15,000 from an upwardly revised 337,000 in the prior week, the Labor Department said. Economists forecast a climb to 340,000 from the originally reported 335,000 in the week ended Oct. 2.
The closely watched four-week moving average of claims, which irons out week-to-week volatility, rose for the fifth straight week, climbing to 353,000 in the week ended Oct. 9 from an upwardly revised 349,000 in the previous week.
The moving average was at its highest since 355,500 in the week ended Feb. 28.
There were no special factors to explain the rise in new claims, but evidence suggests data has been more volatile than usual in recent weeks because of seasonal adjustment factors, a Labor Department analyst said.
Now, I only work in retail, but it seems to me that as we get closer to the Holidays most places start hiring more help, not less. So the claims should, perhaps hold steady, if not go down. I can say that at my worklplace, we are steadily hiring now, to help for the Christmas season. We're hiring at least 12 people, weekly, for the 6 weeks heading into Christmas. Granted, some of those people will be let go at the end of the season(and some will leave before then, because they can't take the workload), but I certainly don't see how this type of news can be perceived as "positive."
