Soaring U.S. Unemployment Threatens Path to Economic Recovery

Nov. 7 (Bloomberg) By Timothy R. Homan--


Highlights:

Key Point to review:

• Unemployment Rate: in the U.S. jumped to 10.2 percent in October, the highest level since 1983.
• Payrolls: fell by 190,000 last month, more than forecast by economists,
• U.S. Economy: has lost 7.3 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007, when the unemployment rate stood at 4.9 percent.
• Underemployment rate: -- which includes part- time workers who’d prefer a full-time position and people who want work but have given up looking -- reached a record 17.5 percent in October from 17 percent, yesterday’s report showed.
• Average Work Week: held at a record low of 33 hours in October. Average weekly earnings rose to $617.76 from $616.11 a month earlier. Workers’ average hourly earnings were 2.4 percent higher than October 2008, the smallest gain since 2004.

“We’ve got lots of people just giving up and leaving the labor force,” said Julia Coronado, a former Fed economist now at BNP Paribas in New York. “Consumer incomes are under pressure, and that raises questions about the sustainability of the improvement we’ve seen in consumer spending.”


COMMENTS:

I am sorry to say, this month unemployment report hits my last year forecast of over ten percent by years end with no end in sight.