Jobless Claims in U.S. Plunged More Than Forecast Last Week

[Purveyor]

Source: Bloomberg

Apr 11, 2013

Applications (INJCJC) for unemployment benefits in the U.S. plunged more than forecast last week, unwinding a surge caused by the Easter holiday and spring break at schools.

Jobless claims decreased by 42,000 to 346,000 in the week ended April 6, from a revised 388,000, Labor Department figures showed today in Washington. The median forecast of 49 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a drop to 360,000. A Labor Department official said no states were estimated and there was nothing unusual in the data.

Holidays such as Easter that fall on different weeks from year to year make it difficult to smooth out swings in the data, leading to increased volatility, the Labor Department said as the numbers were released. Waning firings, a sign employers are retaining workers to meet sales, help lay the ground for a pickup in hiring after payroll gains slowed in March.

“It’s heartening that these numbers have come down,” said Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at IHS Inc. in Lexington, Massachusetts, who forecast a decrease to 345,000, the closest among economists surveyed. “The weakness may have been overstated. This is an early piece of evidence that we’ll see a bounce back in the April employment numbers.”

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-04-11/jobless-claims-in-u-s-plunged-more-than-forecast-last-week.html

[tridim]

1. Another obvious impeachable offense...

From the granny murderer in chief, eh emoprogs?

[demwing]

3. SS Cuts getting to you?

Good

[Larrylarry]

5. SS was not cut

WTF ?

[demwing]

6. Chained CPI is a cut

Obama proposed the cut, after her promised not to way back in 2008.

That's the fuck.

[tridim]

7. There is NO SS cut. Period.

You're a liar like most emoprogs.

[demwing]

8. Are you saying it's not a cut?

Or are you saying it's not a cut yet?

[onehandle]

2. Good news is bad news for the GOPNRA. nt

[DallasNE]

4. 4 Week Moving Average Up 3,000

That means that the 5 weeks ago number that was replaced by this weeks number was smaller than this weeks number -- just to put things in perspective. The trend is still for a softening in the job market and that needs to be watched. Hardly the direction we need to be heading as the austerity imposed by sequester sets in. While this number is not a disaster it is not as good as this article suggests either because of the direction reflected by the 4 week moving average.