Labor Market Looking Better
Following last week’s middling Employment Situation report for October, this week brought two pieces of good news on the labor market.
· Unemployment claims for the week ending November 5th dropped to 390,000, the lowest level since April 2nd. The four-week moving average of 400,000 was the lowest level since April 16th. Jobless claims in the range of 300,000 to 400,000 signal a growing labor market and falling unemployment.
· Job openings at the end of September totaled 3,354,000, an increase of 225,000 from August. Since the trough in July 2009 just as the recession was ending, openings have increased by 1.2 million although they remain below the 4.4 million level when the recession began in December 2007.
The U.S. economy has been firming up just as the euro zone countries are entering a recession brought on by the sovereign debt crisis. The Telegraph recently ran an article titled “World Power Swings Back to America” suggesting that the U.S. will be in better shape than either Europe or China over the next few years thanks to large supplies of natural gas and a strong recovery in manufacturing.
Have a great weekend.
Best regards,
Bob
Robert Bach
SVP, Chief Economist
Grubb & Ellis
312.698.6754
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