Service sector expands at fastest pace in 5 years

[ProSense]

Service sector expands at fastest pace in 5 years

By CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER

WASHINGTON – The U.S. service sector, which employs nearly 90 percent of the work force, grew in January at the fastest pace in five years, a sign that hiring could pick up soon.

The Institute for Supply Management, a private trade group, said Thursday its index of service sector activity rose to 59.4 last month, up from December's reading of 57.1. That's the 14th straight month of growth. Any reading above 50 indicates expansion.

The report follows a strong reading on Monday from the institute's manufacturing index for January, which rose to its highest level in nearly seven years.

<...>

The institute's services employment index rose to 54.5, the highest since May 2006. The employment indexes in the manufacturing and service sector indexes both rose in January, a positive sign that the economy may soon generate more jobs.

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[jenmito]

1. K&R. The economy is doing great! (And not just for the rich.) n/t

[brentspeak]

5. Maybe if you repeat it a few more times, some sucker will come along and believe it

[jenmito]

7. You can deny the facts all you want. They're still the facts. You obviously have a problem with

them.

[brentspeak]

8. "Furniture maker to shutter 3 factories in North America"

http://www.detnews.com/article/20110113/BIZ/101130333/1001/Steelcase-to-cut-400-Mich.-jobs">Steelcase to cut 400 Michigan jobs

http://www.wifr.com/news/headlines/Honeywell_Moving_Jobs_Overseas_115065044.html?ref=044">Honeywell Moving Jobs Overseas

http://www.renewableenergyspot.com/evergreen-solar-moves-to-china/">Evergreen Solar Moves to China

[ProSense]

10. You can pull up any

information you want to. Companies layoff people even in good economic times.

Four S. Ind. companies look to add jobs

New solar plant to bring up to 400 jobs to Portland

Manufacturer To Open New Plant, Add 100 Jobs

[impik]

17. You, my friend, are simply awesome. That was beautiful.

[jwirr]

9. I have worked service sector most of my life. The key word is minimum

wage or a little higher than.

[lame54]

20. Hey - have you heard the economy is doing great?

[golfguru]

25. LMAO

What is the UNemployment number again? Oh well that is irrelevant
so long as jobs are increasing in service sector.

[ProSense]

27. "Oh well that is irrelevant so long as jobs are increasing in service sector."

Do you see another way of reducing unemployment besides increasing jobs?

[golfguru]

28. Yes!

90% of the Stimulus money should have gone to SMALL & MEDIUM BUSINESSES
with gross sales under $25 million and profits under $5 million,
in the form of:

1. Tax credit for new employees hired and retained for minimum 2 years
2. Depreciate all capital outlays during the year of purchase
3. Payroll tax holiday for the employer for 3 years
4. Relaxation of regulations

If above was done at the time stimulus was passed, unemployment would be
at 5% today instead of 9.4%.

[ProSense]

29. Are you serious? I asked:

"Do you see another way of reducing unemployment besides increasing jobs?"

And you responded:

Yes!

90% of the Stimulus money should have gone to SMALL & MEDIUM BUSINESSES
with gross sales under $25 million and profits under $5 million,
in the form of:

1. Tax credit for new employees hired and retained for minimum 2 years
2. Depreciate all capital outlays during the year of purchase
3. Payroll tax holiday for the employer for 3 years
4. Relaxation of regulations

If above was done at the time stimulus was passed, unemployment would be
at 5% today instead of 9.4%.

Wouldn't that require increasing jobs or am I missing the alternative you suggested that reduces unemployment without increasing jobs?

[newthinking]

19. Really? So unemployment is at 5% or less????

Come on now. There is movement in the right direction but to claim the economy is great is hyperbole. I think most people do not think an economy is good until unemployment is much lower than it is.

[rfranklin]

2. Can I supersize those fries?

Can beat those service jobs!

[ProSense]

3. "Can beat those service jobs!" The

manufacturing sector is growing too.

[dmallind]

4. Can I design that building or teach that class or put out that housefire?

All service sector jobs....

[brentspeak]

6. Where are the stats that show a bunch of architecture and teaching jobs have been created?

[ProSense]

11. Where are the stats that they're not?

The economy is improving.

[brentspeak]

12. (Like going around in circles): the burden of proof is on you

"The economy is improving."

For who?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-02-03/productivity-in-u-s-unexpectedly-rises-as-companies-hold-back-labor-costs.html">Productivity in U.S. Unexpectedly Accelerates, Labor Costs Fall

You should know by now that not all of us here on the forums are gullible sheep.

[ProSense]

14. What is that supposed to prove? From your link

<...>

Employment may improve as companies such as Ford Motor Corp., which cut jobs and boosted efficiency during the recession, now look to expand as sales pick up. Falling labor costs give the Federal Reserve more reason to stick to its unconventional easing program through June.

<...>

Labor costs, adjusted for efficiency gains, dropped at a 0.6 percent pace following a 0.1 percent drop in the prior quarter, the Labor Department’s productivity report showed. Costs were projected to rise 0.2 percent, according to the Bloomberg survey median.

For all of 2010, productivity climbed 3.6 percent, the most since 2002. Labor costs fell 1.5 percent after a 1.6 percent decrease in 2009. It was the first back-to-back drop since 1962- 63, the Labor Department said.

Among manufacturers, productivity rose at a 5.8 percent annual pace, the most in a year, after rising 1.4 percent in the third quarter of the year.

<...>

The news is good for the economy.

[brentspeak]

15. Yes, stagnant or even reduced wages IS good for the top 10%'s personal economy

And sucks for everyone else.

Thanks for answering the question. Why can't you do that all the time?

[ProSense]

18. You think job creation is going to change inequity?

A person earning $60,000 should be earning $90,000.

Job creation isn't going to address inequity. The two issues shouldn't be conflated.

[brentspeak]

33. Since you're the one who claimed that productivity gains = "job creation"

And since my post clearly never made the claim at all that "job creation changes inequity" -- and, in fact, said the complete opposite, while you, in actuality, were the one making that claim -- one can only conclude that your non-responses are simply a way of posting pink noise.

[ProSense]

41. I made no such claim. n/t

[TheKentuckian]

23. How is wage destruction and productivity gains in high unemployment good?

[BklnDem75]

42. The burden of proof is on the one who made the original claim

The claim was fast food jobs. Got any stats backing that up?

[DrToast]

13. "Your honor, this man is clearly deranged."

[slackmaster]

16. I've worked in the service sector for my entire career, and I'm doing pretty well

You should educate yourself on what the term actually means.

[lame54]

21. now is your chance to educate us

[BklnDem75]

22. Examples of service sector employment include:

* Government
* Healthcare/hospitals
* Public health
* Waste disposal
* Education
* Banking
* Insurance
* Financial services
* Legal services
* Consulting
* News media
* Hospitality industry (e.g. restaurants, hotels, casinos)
* Tourism
* Retail sales
* Franchising
* Real estate
* Sales


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service_sector

A simple search never hurt anyone.

[lame54]

40. I'm glad you're ok

[BklnDem75]

43. I appreciate it

2 million more keystrokes and I'd have a blister... :cry:

[unapatriciated]

44. "A simple search never hurt anyone."

Don't take lame's comment to seriously. He knows what service sector employment includes (since he has been in the grocery industry for more than twenty years).
The problem is we can not sustain or grow our economy based on our service industry alone. We need manufacturing jobs and investments in new energy technology.

[slackmaster]

24. The service sector includes everything that doesn't fall under mining, agriculture, or manufacturing

I have spent most of the last 30+ years in information technology within the financial services industry.

The service sector includes most public employees.

[golfguru]

26. Only real wealth creators: Mining, Manufacturing & Agriculture

the rest is overhead, feeding off the wealth created.
Only other wealth creators are research & development resulting in
marketable products such as MS Windows, New pharmaceuticals,
invention of medical devices, productivity improving product design, etc.

[slackmaster]

32. Interesting comment. Economics is probably my weakest subject, and I can't really dispute that.

But the service sector does keep the truly productive parts of the economy running. Financial services like banking and insurance provide an economic framework for the exchange of goods and services. It also provides intangible benefits like music, visual arts, fine food, and other forms of entertainment. Teachers are essential for preparing people to participate in any sector. Historians and philosophers help us understand human nature, and give meaning to events and trends.

It would be a sad, dull world if everyone worked exclusively in mining, agriculture, or manufacturing.

[golfguru]

34. Absolutely correct

Once the wealth is produced, it has to be consumed in a pleasurable manner.
So we need the musicians, doctors, beauticians, massage therapists, reatail
clerks, taxi drivers, etc etc etc.

But if there is no wealth created, they will all have a impossible time finding
paying customers.

[slackmaster]

35. If agriculture ceased, in a short time there would be no potential paying customers anyway

:hi:

[golfguru]

46. True world wide but not country wide

Countries like Japan can import a lot of food products because of
their very high manufacturing output.

[ProSense]

38. Yeah, the top 1 percent is filled with miners.

"Only other wealth creators are research & development resulting in
marketable products such as MS Windows, New pharmaceuticals,
invention of medical devices, productivity improving product design, etc."

Bill Gates is rich, and he employs a lot of people in the service sector.

[JoePhilly]

30. Sure, but its not like those service sector workers SPEND their money!!!!

Because if they did, that would help the economy.

But no. These workers save the money and live off of their investments.

(Do I really need the sarcasm tag here?)

[mikekohr]

31. Three Graphs, all pointing to Progress

?

?

Real GDP Grows For 5th Straight Quarter

http://bureaucountydems.blogspot.com/2010/11/real-gdp-grows-for-5th-straight-month.html

One should also note that in the very first quarter that President Obama was in office, the effects of the stimulus began to reverse the free fall he inherited from George W. Bush. In the ending of George W. Bush's Great Recession, we see the same pattern repeated: Republicans cause recessions, Democrats clean them up (see History of Recessions).

It took 6 months for President Obama's economic and tax policies to return GDP to positive territory. If we as a nation want to avoid the painful recovery from the climb out of economic holes we have to quit electing those digging them.

[Jakes Progress]

36. Sounds like lots of engineers serving fries.

Do you work in the "Service Sector"? Do you know what that means?

From reading the replies here, it is obvious that those with jobs and benefits have little sympathy for those who don't. As you say in a sub thread above. You can pull headlines and numbers to prove anything. Those who want to feel rosy just pull up the headlines and numbers that "prove" their point. You can post "feel good" headlines about the economy all day. And I can find headlines that are polar opposite. The reality is that the economy sucks. The fed just said that it would be years before the employment rate would equal what it used to.

And the employment rate isn't the whole story. It's just the number of jobs. If 50 teachers get laid off and then find work cleaning houses for minimum wage, it is a wash to the employment numbers.

The republicans created this mess. They are getting off the hook when people buy into the rosy views of how we are doing. The problem is that the administration is top-heavy with advisors and decision makers whose first goal is to maintain the rich. There are precious few who are trying to serve the other 95%/

[Name removed]

39. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Vinca]

37. Actually, the fact the service sector is growing over other sectors is sad.

You can't have much of an economy off burger flippers and hotel maids. We need to bring back the good-paying manufacturing jobs from overseas.

[NorthCarolina]

45. Service sector? Would that be Burger Manufacturing?

American graduates of Hamburger "U" ?