More Signs
Today, there are still more signs that the economy is simply nowhere near as bad as pessimists and other professional pessimists want to paint it. The jobless rate decreased again as employers added some 128,000 jobs.
Hiring perked up in August as employers added 128,000 jobs, pulling down the unemployment rate to 4.7 percent, sending a Labor Day message that the economic expansion still has staying power.
The latest snapshot, released by the Labor Department Friday, was a bit brighter than expected and should ease any fears that the expansion that began in late 2001 is not in danger of fizzling out.
The tally of new jobs last month was slightly stronger than the 125,000 that economists were forecasting. The nation's unemployment rate dropped down a notch from a five-month high of 4.8 percent in July. Job gains for June and July also turned out to be better than previously estimated. In June, employers boosted payrolls by 134,000 positions and in July they added another 121,000.
The report comes as the nation's work force gets ready to the Labor Day holiday and as the election season looms.
Economic conditions _ especially those where people live and work _ are likely to be on voters' minds when they go to the polls in November.
Workers' average hourly earnings edged up to $16.79 in August, a 0.1 percent increase from July. Economists were forecasting a bigger, 0.3 percent advance. While workers welcome strong wage growth, economists worry that a rapid and prolonged pickup in wages can ignite inflation fears.
Over the 12 months ending August, wages grew by a strong 3.9 percent. The last time this figure was higher was in June 2001.
For those who do not understand my point here, I am not saying everything is peachy in the economy. What am am saying is that it simply is not as bleak as some people are painting it.
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Flopping Aces » Blog Archive » The Booming Economy — Saturday, 2 September , 2006 @ 2:01 am
By MrGone, Friday, 1 September , 2006 @ 1:25 pm
Slightly more in depth analysis may be found here:
http://www.rgemonitor.com/blog/roubini/144322/
Sorry, it’s not very “peachy.”
By Gaius, Friday, 1 September , 2006 @ 1:27 pm
It’s also agenda driven.
By MrGone, Friday, 1 September , 2006 @ 1:30 pm
Maybe, maybe not. It still lists some pretty serious shortcomings, agenda or not.
By Gaius, Friday, 1 September , 2006 @ 1:30 pm
You’re also making the perfect case for why we need to get illegals out of the labor market. Sure you want to keep up that line of attack?
By MrGone, Friday, 1 September , 2006 @ 1:39 pm
I don’t have a problem getting illegals out, it big business that loves em. They love the temporary high tech, low paid workers also. People think we can close the border. That hasn’t and won’t work. But you start going to big farms, construction sites, etc and slapping companies with large fines, you’ll see the problem go away very fast. Plus, you don’t even need that many people to do it.
What would make you assume I’m for keeping them here?
By Gaius, Friday, 1 September , 2006 @ 1:46 pm
It’s not actually just the big busnesses, it also happens to be politicians who see them as a source of votes. It’s a lot more complex than one issue.
Sorry if I made an assumption that isn’t true.
By MrGone, Friday, 1 September , 2006 @ 3:48 pm
I don’t personally believe the vote thing is that big or that large a driver. This is America, it’s all and always about the Benjamins. I’ve even noticed here in SE PA the dramatic influx of labor for the mushroom, poultry, farming, landscaping and contruction businesses.
The problem here is that Americans want cheap food and the only way to get that is through cheap labor. If people had to pay what food is really worth, then perhaps these “jobs Americans won’t do” would be done by Americans.
Personally, I wouldn’t work in a field all day for 5.60/hr but for 13-14/hr, you never know, you might have more people than jobs at that point. One should also keep in mind that the minimum wage is severely behind in adjustment. When I was working in the 70’s I remember making 1.65/hr. If you account for inflation, not the govt reported but real inflation, that’s about 13-14/hr. Like I said, maybe then “Americans” would take those jobs.
By K T Cat, Friday, 1 September , 2006 @ 4:00 pm
Er, you can actually go ahead and say it’s peachy. Low unemployment and low inflation is peachy. You heard it here first.