Job growth shock- Only 32,000 new jobs in July

[papau]

http://money.cnn.com/2004/08/06/news/economy/jobless_july/index.htm?cnn=yes

http://money.cnn.com/2004/08/06/news/economy/jobless_july/index.htm?cnn=yes

Job growth shock

Only 32,000 new jobs in July, far fewer than Wall Street forecast; unemployment rate slips to 5.5%.
August 6, 2004: 8:38 AM EDT



NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Hiring by U.S. employers slowed significantly in July, according to a government report Friday, as the number of new jobs added to payrolls came in far below Wall Street expectations.

The Labor Department report showed only 32,000 new net jobs added to payrolls during the month, down from a revised 78,000 jobs that were added in June. The unemployment rate fell to 5.5 percent, an improvement from the 5.6 percent reading in June.

Economists surveyed by Briefing.com forecast a 243,000 gain in jobs, and the unemployment rate staying unchanged at 5.6 percent, while economists surveyed by Reuters had a median jobs growth forecast of 228,000, with a range of estimates between 200,000 and 300,000.

This is the second straight month of jobs growth far below economists forecasts, following three months that showed strong jobs growth starting in March.

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm

Friday, August 6, 2004.


THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION: JULY 2004

Nonfarm employment was little changed (+32,000) in July, and the unemployment
rate was essentially unchanged at 5.5 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of
the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Employment levels in most of the
major industry sectors were little changed over the month.

Unemployment (Household Survey Data)

Both the number of unemployed persons, 8.2 million, and the unemployment
rate, 5.5 percent, were essentially unchanged in July. The unemployment rate
has shown little movement since December 2003. The jobless rates for the major
worker groups--adult men (4.9 percent), adult women (4.9 percent), teenagers
(17.6 percent), whites (4.8 percent), blacks (10.9 percent), and Hispanics or
Latinos (6.8 percent)--also were little changed over the month. The unemploy-
ment rate for Asians was 4.3 percent in July, not seasonally adjusted.
(See tables A-1, A-2, and A-3.)

Total Employment and the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)

Total employment rose by 629,000 to 139.7 million in July, and the employ-
ment population ratio--the proportion of the population age 16 and over with
jobs--increased to 62.5 percent. The civilian labor force also increased over
the month, rising by 577,000 to 147.9 million, and the labor force participa-
tion rate rose to 66.2 percent. (See table A-1.)

Persons Not in the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)

The number of persons who were marginally attached to the labor force was
1.6 million in July, the same as a year earlier. (Data are not seasonally
adjusted.) These individuals wanted and were available to work and had looked
for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed,
however, because they did not actively search for work in the 4 weeks preceding
the survey. There were 504,000 discouraged workers in July, little changed from
a year earlier. Discouraged workers, a subset of the marginally attached, were
not currently looking for work specifically because they believed no jobs were
available for them. The other 1.1 million marginally attached had not searched
for work for reasons such as school or family responsibilities. (See table
A-13.)

[skooooo]

1. Not just shock, SHOCK AND AWE!

..just what Bush is known for.

[papau]

2. DUPE

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=732033&mesg_id=732033

[rusty charly]

3. but the times says:

Job Picture Looks Good Now, but Recession Left Fears That Endure
By FLOYD NORRIS

Published: August 6, 2004

WHEN the July employment numbers are released today, the Bush administration will hail them as proof that the economy is doing well, and it will have a point. But despite rapid job growth this year, many Americans continue to believe there is a job crisis.

Why is that? Some blame an overly negative press, but the real answer may be found by delving into the statistics. New numbers from the Labor Department show that the job downturn of 2001 and 2002 was surprisingly damaging to experienced workers, particularly older ones.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/06/business/06norris.html