Tag Archives: Bureau of Labor Statistics

Job openings in February rose to 3,925,000, the highest level since May 2008, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Tuesday in its monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). The number of persons unemployed for each job opening fell to 3.07, the lowest level since October 2008.

The March employment situation report was another in a series of labor reports that had analysts scratching their heads--on the left or right side--depending on their politics. Just as there is no Democratic or Republican way to collect garbage (okay, there might be depending on how much government you want), there should be no Democratic or Republican economic data. The numbers are what they are, not what your political lens tells you they are. That said, when data such as the March report are released--weak job growth, yet a drop in the unemployment rate--conspiracy theorists emerge from the woodwork.

The economy added 88,000 jobs in March--the weakest showing since last June--but the unemployment rate dropped to 7.6.percent, its lowest level since December 2008, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday. Economists had forecast payrolls would grow by 200,000, and that the unemployment rate would remain at 7.7 percent.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance jumped an unexpected 28,000 to 385,000--the highest level since November--for the week ending March 30, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists expected claims to rise to 350,000. Initial jobless claims for the week ending March 23 were unchanged at 357,000.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance jumped 16,000 to 357,000 for the week ended March 23, the strongest jump since mid-February, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Meanwhile the number of continuing claims for the week ended March 16, reported on a one-week lag, fell 27,000 to 3,050,000, the lowest level since June 2008.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance increased 2,000 to 336,000 for the week ending March 16--the first increase in a month--the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists expected claims to rise to 340,000. Initial jobless claims for the week ending March 9 were revised up to 334,000 from the initially reported 332,000. The slight increase in first-time claims was driven largely by seasonal adjustment factors and as such masks the sharp improvement in the jobs market.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance fell 10,000 to 332,000 for the week ending March 9, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists expected 350,000 initial unemployment claims. The drop in filings--the third in the last four weeks--resumed a downward trend in layoffs.

The number of layoffs fell 4.0 percent to 1,507,000 in January, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Tuesday in its monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) release, which details the ins and out of the labor market. The layoff total was the smallest since the JOLTS reports began in December 2000. At the same time, BLS said, the number of job openings rose 2.2 percent in January to 3,693,000, which meant there were 3.34 unemployed people for every job opening--a slight improvement from 3.38 in December.

Perhaps the most important piece of economic news in the last few days was not the continued drop in the unemployment rate or the positive blurbs in the Beige Book or even the Dow reaching a new record high, but Thursday's quarterly Flow of Funds report. According to the report for Q4 2012, household assets grew to $79.5 trillion in the fourth quarter, an increase of $1.3 trillion--not too shabby. Household financial assets were up $784 billion to $54.4 billion but home equity (the value of household real estate less loans against that real estate) grew $452.8 billion, the result of two moving parts: real estate values (which increased) and household mortgage liabilities, which dropped.

The economy added 236,000 jobs in March and the unemployment rate to 7.7 percent, its lowest level since December 2008, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. Economists had forecast payrolls would grow by 160,000, and that the unemployment rate would drop to 7.8 percent. Job growth for December, originally reported at 196,000, was revised upward to 219,000, while January was revised down to 119,000 from the originally reported 157,000. One concern from the report was the number of multiple jobholders, which increased 340,000. This means new jobs went to an individual already employed, making the decline in the unemployment rate even more significant.