Unemployment Falls To 9.0%

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2011-02-04-jobs-january_N.htm

WASHINGTON (AP) — Employers added just 36,000 new jobs in January, the Labor Department said, and the unemployment rate ticked down to 9.0% from 9.4% in December.

The harsh winter weather may have tempered January's employment gains. Heavy snows caused some companies, particularly those in construction but also in manufacturing, to suspend work. That likely resulted in temporary layoffs.

"Firms are beginning to say, 'wait a minute we're beginning to see enough increases in sales ... and we've exhausted our productivity gains,'" Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Thursday, while addressing reporters at the National Press Club.

The Institute for Supply Management said that its service sector index rose to 59.4 in January. That's the highest since August 2005 and marked the 14th straight month of growth. Any reading above 50 indicates expansion.

Earlier this week, the trade group said factory activity in January expanded at the fastest pace in nearly seven years.

Both the ISM's factory and services reports showed that order backlogs are growing. That gives companies more certainty that sales will keep rising.

"It's that backlog of orders that gives businesses the confidence to go out and hire more workers," said Mark Vitner, an economist at Wells Fargo Securities.

Another positive sign for hiring is fewer people applied for unemployment benefits last week, reversing a spike from the previous week largely caused by harsh winter weather.

Applications fell to 415,000, the Labor Department said. That resumes a downward trend that took shape late last year and gave rise to hopes that employers would step up hiring.

Applications are well below their peak of 651,000, reached in March 2009, when the economy was deep in recession. Fewer than 425,000 people applying for benefits is consistent with modest job growth. But applications would need to fall consistently below 375,000 to signal a likely decline in the unemployment rate.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2009-02-06-new-jobs-growth-graphic_N.htm

===============================================
I'm pretty surprised that it's made a steep drop like that already. That's quite a move in the right direction. We've still got 11 months left in the year, so it's definitely looking good if the unemployment rate is at 8% by the end of this year/beginning of 2012.

 

:smt043:smt043:smt043

 

I like how the government has Americans fooled that unemployment never moved beyond double digits.

 

Because they county non gainful employment such as part time work and temporary employment. They've always done that.

 

Don't jump to conclusions just yet. This January, it was projected that it was suppose to be 150,000+ jobs to be added. But it turned out to be a paltry 36,000. The cause of that drop is that people are not applying for unemployment, so we're suppose to see a bigger gain in the coming months.

 

This is a pretty fair perspective offering both sides of the argument.


"The economy we preside over today is better than the one we inherited."

Hank Johnson on Wednesday, January 26th, 2011 in an online posting
Johnson says economy better since Obama became president

Share this story:





Georgia Congressman Hank Johnson used President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address last week to give his own state of the American economy.

"There is no doubt that the economy we preside over today is better than the one we inherited," the representative said in a one-paragraph statement on his website.

"But we know," added Johnson, a DeKalb County Democrat, who was one of Obama’s earliest supporters when he campaigned for the presidency in 2008, "we must do more to ensure that America and its workers can compete and win in the 21st century."

His statement raised an interesting question: Is the economy better now than when Obama took office on Jan. 20, 2009?

Officially, the nation’s economic recession ended in June 2009, but many Americans are still without jobs and most experts said the recovery is slow. Forty-four states are projecting budget shortfalls this year, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Principles.

So how do you measure the economy? As Georgia State University economics expert Rajeev Dhawan noted to us, the economy is like a diamond. There are many facets to it.

Johnson’s spokesman Andy Phelan said the main areas to consider when measuring the economy are the stock market, industrial production, consumer spending and exports. They were comparing the last two full years of George W. Bush’s presidency, 2006 to 2008, to the following two years. (Bush’s presidency ended on Jan. 20, 2009.)

"I think jobs is the most important stat -- as you would probably agree - and we’ve seen 12 straight months of job growth in the private sector," Phelan told us in an e-mail. "In 2010, the private sector gained 1.3 million jobs -- the strongest job growth since 2006."

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke recently told a congressional committee that the economy has shown "hopeful" signs of growth -- citing increases in consumer spending and private-sector investment in new equipment and software. But Bernanke also said he was troubled by issues such as long-term unemployment and mortgage foreclosures.

Bernanke said that the housing sector "remains depressed." RealtyTrac, which tracks foreclosures, last week reported that foreclosure activity jumped in 149 of the nation’s 206 largest metropolitan areas in 2010. Atlanta ranked third, behind Houston and Seattle.

New home construction, though, has slightly increased since the end of 2008, The Associated Press reported,using data from the U.S. Commerce Department. In 2008, builders broke ground on 549,000 homes. Last year, construction began on 587,600 homes.

Some frequently considered economic indicators, like the gross domestic product, which measures the nation’s output and its consumption of goods and services, have remained steady since 2006.

Another popular economic measure, the Dow Jones industrial average, is hovering around 12,000, about a 50 percent increase from 7,949 on Jan. 20, 2009. The Dow decreased by about 50 percent between the beginning of 2007 and the beginning of 2009. Some may argue the drop between 2007 and 2009 was the result of a few extraordinary days on Wall Street. The Dow dropped 504 points on Sept. 15, 2008, the worst one-day decline since the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The Dow dropped by about 1,400 points during a five-day stretch in October 2008.

On trade, there is some support for Johnson’s case,but clearly room for growth. The federal trade deficit was $38.3 billion in November 2010, according to the most recent figures available from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The $38.3 billion deficit was about 25 percent less than the largest deficit of the Obama presidency, $50.1 billion in June 2010. The deficit was $43.8 billion in November 2008, a 50 percent decline from the high of $66.4 billion in July 2008. Exports increased from the November 2008 total of $141 billion to the November 2010 figure of $159.6 billion.

Unemployment is another trouble point for the congressman’s argument. The nation’s unemployment rate was 7.2 percent in December 2008. A year later, it was 9.9 percent. In December 2010, the rate was 9.4 percent; lower than at the end of 2009, but still higher than at the same point in 2008. Monthly job losses, which were brutal between July 2008 and June 2009, have stopped, and the data shows there is growth in that area.

However, the number of discouraged workers -- people who’ve stopped looking for a job -- has doubled since the end of 2008, from about 642,000 that December to the December 2010 total of 1.3 million.

Michael Pento, senior economist for Euro Pacific Capital, a Connecticut-based brokerage firm, said the economy has improved in the GDP, initial jobless claims and regional manufacturing. But he said it has worsened in the critical areas of housing, unemployment and -- in his greatest concern -- debt.

The gross federal debt -- the amount of money the government owes itself -- has risen since the end of 2008 from slightly more than $10 trillion to its current total of about $14 trillion.

Some economists prefer to use another measurement of debt when measuring the nation’s economic health. They focus on the public debt rather than gross federal debt, because the public debt will require real money to repay the lenders, which in turn would have a faster ripple effect in the private sector.The public debt -- which is held by individuals, companies, foreign governments and others -- is higher now than it was at the beginning of 2009. However, it is now a smaller percentage of the nation’s GDP than it was in January 2009.

Some analysts like Pento worry the debt will drive the nation’s economy toward a cliff, without an air safety bag.

"The economy can’t be deemed better now than when George W. Bush left office because the factors that led to the credit crisis exist today, only they have been vastly intensified," Pento told us. "How can anybody claim the economy is getting better?"

Johnson’s office agreed that debt is a serious concern, but argued that job growth, manufacturing growth and improved consumer confidence are more important immediate factors in the economic recovery.

So where does all of this leave us? Matthew Dowd, who worked as a strategist for Bush, argued in December that the economy has "worsened" since Obama took office. Our national PolitiFact site rated his statement Half-True.

In many areas, the numbers show the economy has grown. However, there are analysts and members of Congress like Wisconsin’s Paul Ryan, a Republican, who worry the debt problem has grown during the Obama presidency and fear it will be a painful problem in the near future. The worst of the nation’s recent economic troubles began in mid-2008 and continued through much of 2009.

"The growth is very strong," says Georgia State’s Dhawan, director of the university’s Economic Forecasting Center,who argues the economy has improved.

In some areas, the economy has improved over the past two years in measurable areas like trade and the Dow. Congressman Johnson is correct about that.

But major components like housing and unemployment are still in the dumps. Until those key areas turn around, it’s hard to argue that the overall economy has improved.

Johnson’s statement contains an element of truth but ignores critical facts that would give readers a different impression. Under our guidelines, the congressman’s statement rates as Barely True.

 

Watch mfers bend into pretzels trying to keep from giving the Obama Administration its props.

Ready...? GO!

 

What adminstration???????????

Those mofos in Washington don't run shit.

I can't believe you're caught up in this entry-level propaganda.

The Banks control what your car note and mortgage will be and how much interest you will pay.

They determine weather sleep in a bed tonight or under a bridge like a Troll.

It's sad to see how easilly the Elites can pimp people just by putting a Black puppet in that fake-ass White House.

 

Exhibit A

 

Just prop a Black puppet in a suit in front of a negro and he'll follow that mofo clean thru shit.:smt043

You're just like those hillbillies that follow Palin.

Obama and Bush BOTH had Wall Street bankers as
Treasury Seceratries....so did Reagan and Clinton.

Bush AND Obama want you to learn Spanish rather than enforce immigration laws:smt039

The man is looking to replace you in your own communty and you lap his ass like a dog because he's "the 1st Black President"

You are so far down the trick bag you can't even see your feet.

 

It is not the banks that set interest rates, the FED does that by raising or lowering the overnight federal funds rate and to a lesser degree the discount rate.

While the FED, as an independent private entity, does have in my opinion FAR too much leeway in their operations, disclosure and oversight, our government does in fact have some control (According to the Board of Governors, the Federal Reserve is independent within government in that "its decisions do not have to be ratified by the President or anyone else in the executive or legislative branch of government." However, its authority is derived from the U.S. Congress and is subject to congressional oversight. Additionally, the members of the Board of Governors, including its chairman and vice-chairman, are chosen by the President and confirmed by Congress. The government also exercises some control over the Federal Reserve by appointing and setting the salaries of the system's highest-level employees). The fact that the leadership of the FED is appointed and not elected, and the deep ties the fed have with Goldman Sachs, should concern all thinking Americans.

Most Americans have no clue about the bold part above which is why they blame Obama and congress for the recession instead of who truly is at fault, the FED!

 

If you can stop with the infantile insults for a moment, it may interest you to know that illegal immigration is DECLINING

Rachel Maddow says illegal immigration is declining

Share this story:





After criticizing conservative blogs and Republican lawmakers for perpetuating false facts, Rachel Maddow made an interesting claim on her show on Monday, August 2, 2010.

Maddow said that Republicans consistently distort immigration issues to stir up their base during an election cycle.

"Illegal immigration always has to be refashioned into a crisis for every electoral cycle that Republicans want to use it," said Maddow. "The overall fact about illegal immigration is that it's not actually getting worse." Maddow then showed a graph of apprehension rates of illegal immigrants from 1978 to 2008 that showed that the rate in 2008 was the lowest in years.
We were curious to see if Maddow was right in saying that illegal immigration is not getting worse.

The graph that Maddow displayed on the show was from a fact sheet published by the Department of Homeland Security. The graph displays border apprehensions by year. There is no way to know exactly how many people illegally cross the U.S. border every year, but "apprehensions seem to be an indicator of inflows of undocumented Mexicans" crossing the border illegally, according to Jeff Passel, a senior demographer for the Pew Hispanic Center.

According to the DHS fact sheet, "the number of apprehensions made by the Border Patrol declined for the third year in a row to 724,000 in 2008 after reaching a mid-decade peak of 1,189,000 in 2005."

However, some immigration experts do not consider apprehension rates to be particularly useful. Although the apprehension rate is usually a good indicator of trends, it is not exact, according to Bryan Griffith, a spokesman for the Center for Immigration Studies, a think tank in favor of increased border enforcement. "Just because the apprehension rate is down, doesn't mean less people are trying to come. It could mean they're getting better" at not getting caught.
Maddow decided to use apprehension statistics to make her point about illegal immigration. However, illegal immigration is about more than illegal border crossings. "Focusing on the number of people crossing the border alone is just inaccurate," said Jim Carafano of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. Apprehension rates are useful, "but don't tell you the whole story." For instance, it is estimated that as many as 40 percent of illegal immigrants in the U.S. entered legally, but overstayed their visas.

The whole story is better reflected in the total estimated population of illegal immigrants in the United States. Using monthly Census data, the Center for Immigration Studies estimated that "the illegal population declined 13.7 percent (1.7 million) from a peak of 12.5 million in the summer of 2007 to 10.8 million in the first quarter of 2009." This is similar to DHS estimates, which also saw a downward trend from a peak of 11.8 million in 2007 to 10.8 million in 2009.

Even though Maddow didn't use those statistics, they back up her claim. Illegal immigration is not increasing, and by at least two measurements, illegal immigration has actually gotten somewhat better. But don't herald the defeat of illegal immigration just yet.

It's important to note that the decline in the number of undocumented workers sneaking across the border may have less to do with a more secure border and more to do with a less secure economy in the U.S. The DHS report speculates that the decrease in inflow may be due to "declining U.S. economic growth and enhanced border enforcement efforts."

Passel thinks it has more to do with the former than the latter. "It's not that we're discouraging people," said Passel, "It's because they know they can't get jobs because of the economic downturn." Passel said that his data shows that "from 1992 through about 2004 the U.S. employment rate and the volume of the numbers of Mexicans coming to the U.S. are almost perfectly correlated." This seems to indicate that illegal immigration inflows are primarily related to economic considerations.

"It's both economic and enforcement," said Griffith."The more difficult you make the trip, the less people are going to attempt to make that trip."

However, if the unemployment rate drops and more jobs are available, it's likely that more people will risk crossing the border, because the benefits are worth the risk, according Carafano. The test is whether the illegal immigrant population will continue to decline after the economy picks up.

By two key measurements, the numbers of illegal immigrants crossing the border are not increasing. At least for the time being, the numbers in both counts are going down. But when the economy picks up again, it is possible that illegal immigration will once again increase. Nevertheless, looking at the numbers, we rate Maddow's statement True.

 

What don't you believe??

You're as gullable as Gilligan.




I'm supposed to believe that...in the midst of a devastating drug/gang war...and rampant government corruption...mexicans are chosing to stay put...rather than enjoy such goodies as:

Birth right citizenship.....Home ownership.....In state tuition...Free education....Catch and release programs and sanctuary cities...favoritable press...ect ect.

C'mon man..

You can't be that stupid.

 

Ad hominem attacks aside, the illegals come here for one main reason, to earn money, the stats are showing a decline because those jobs are harder to find despite the various local laws that may or may not provide benefits.

 

All politicians are puppets, President is a figurehead, bla bla bla, we got the message the first 500 times.

 

Prove me otherwise...

 

They are no RELIABLE stats on illegal immigrants.

 

You are the one making the assertion, post some facts to back up your beliefs and we will counter with facts, if you are truly interested in a fact-based, logical, well reasoned debate on the matter.

You claim the President is a puppet controlled by wall street, are you familiar with the financial regulatory bill? http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PLAW-111publ203/content-detail.html "An act to promote the financial stability of the United States by improving accountability and transparency in the financial system, to end ``too big to fail'', to protect the American taxpayer by ending bailouts, to protect consumers from abusive financial services practices, and for other purposes.

In general, the bill created an independent consumer protection agency, established new ways to liquidate failed financial firms, created a council to warn about systemic risks to the financial system and tighten regulatory scrutiny of the financial system while increasing transparency.

Powerless puppets would not put forth/support this kind of legislation.

 

If that is the case, why do you claim illegal immigration is increasing?

 

:smt092 If you bought your car and house, then no.Believe what you want. Every one has the right to opinions and never have to prove anything of those opinions.