| Log In | Register Now
On November 19th at 8:30A.M. ET initial jobless claims for the week ending 11/14 will be released. Recent statements by Fed Chairman Bernanke indicate that Fed rate policy decisions will be closely tied to the outlook for the US labor market. The Fed is unlikely to hike rates before US employment returns to growth. The unemployment outlook in the US remains weak. Tuesday a number of groups representing African-Americans labor unions Hispanics and others urged Congress to take more action to create jobs. The US unemployment rate is at 10.2% and a number of economists are warning that the unemployment rate could rise to as high as 11% by mid-2010. The unemployment rate for African-Americans is 15.7% and for Hispanics it is 13.1%. Initial jobless claims are seen as a key predictor of the outlook for US unemployment. Since the peak in initial jobless claims at 674k in March the pace of layoffs in the US has slowed considerably. Initial jobless claims for week ending 11/7 dropped from 514k to 502k. The decline in last week's jobless claims partly reflects the impact of seasonal factors and there may be some payback in Thursday's jobless claims report. Initial jobless claims for the week ending 11/14 are expected to rise by 3k to 505k. Although the jobless claims data has been improving a drop to around 400k is needed to suggest that the labor market has stabilized. If Thursday's jobless claims report drops below important 500k it may contribute to an additional boost in the recent rise in risk appetite. Continuing claims will also be released Thursday. Continuing jobless claims have dropped significantly over the last few months. The drop in continuing claims partly reflects the fact large numbers of the unemployed have exhausted their 26 weeks of unemployment benefits. Continuing claims are expected to drop to 5.600mln compared to 5.631mln last month.
Can Chocolate Cake for Breakfast Diet Help You Lose Weight?
Free Edition
TAKE A TOURWe value your privacy. Your email address will not be shared.
