New filings for jobless benefits spiked by 28,000 last week, another sign of a softening labor market. Total new filings rose to 261,000, the highest since October 2021, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. There were no distortions to the report like the fraudulent claims in ... READ MORE >
Initial jobless claims inch up, yet labor market remains tight
Initial jobless claims inched up by 2,000 last week to 232,000, slightly below expectations, according to the Labor Department on Thursday. The data pointed to more softening in the labor market based on our preferred metric of the long-term trend—the 13-week moving average. But the upward ... READ MORE >
Job openings exceed 10 million as labor market imbalance widens
Job openings came in stronger than expected for April as the imbalance in the labor market widened, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Wednesday The latest data comes at an important juncture, two weeks ahead of the Federal Reserve’s highly anticipated June ... READ MORE >
Consumer confidence falls to six-month low
Consumer confidence inched down in May to the lowest level in six months as sentiment on both the current economy and expectations weakened. More important, labor market sentiment fell to the lowest level in two years, signaling a potential significant slowdown in May's job gains. More data on the jobs ... READ MORE >
Jobless claims edge up but fraud spurs big downward revisions
Initial jobless claims underwent a significant downward revision after a spike in fraudulent claims led to a distortion in the data. New filings for jobless benefits released by the Labor Department on Thursday increased slightly by 4,000 last week, but the more noteworthy change was a ... READ MORE >
Jobless claims drop as fraud claims are resolved
New filings for jobless benefits fell last week to 242,000 from 264,000, a sharp 8.3% drop, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. The fall off came after fraudulent claims in Massachusetts—which were confirmed by state officials—had inflated the top-line number in the prior weeks. On a ... READ MORE >
Retail sales rise as American consumers stay resilient
Retail sales rose by 0.4% in April following two consecutive months of declines, the Commerce Department reported on Tuesday. While the top-line number came out lower than expected, spending on retail goods continued to show an underlying strength in April. The data should support the ... READ MORE >
Consumer sentiment drops as inflation expectations rise
Consumer sentiment in April plunged to its lowest level since November as views on both current economic conditions and expectations worsened, the University of Michigan reported on Friday. The top-line sentiment index dropped to 57.7 from 63.5 in April. The current conditions and ... READ MORE >
Jobless claims and producer inflation show mixed results
Initial jobless claims rose by 9.1% for the week ending May 6, to 264,000, the most since 2021, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. The rise came as the Labor Department also reported the producer prices bounced back in April, in part because of favorable comparisons to surging prices of ... READ MORE >
What would happen if the government defaults on its debt?
Another debt ceiling crisis is approaching, and it is in no one’s best interest. Policy brinksmanship over lifting the debt ceiling and the threat of default it brings is increasing the cost of doing business and carries far more risk than is commonly acknowledged. At its core, the stand-off ... READ MORE >