Rare Good News: Jobless Claims Fall

...below the all-important 400K line, to 398K
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 28, 2011 11:05 AM CDT
Rare Good News: Jobless Claims Fall
In this July 13, 2011 photo, National Tire & Battery area director Don Hudome, right, meets with an attendee at a National Career Fairs Job Fair, in Dallas.   (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Here’s something you don’t see every day: good news from the labor market. New jobless claims fell by 24,000 in the week ending on July 23, to 398,000, the Labor Department announced today. That’s the lowest level of job loss since April, and significantly better than the 415,000 that a Bloomberg survey of economists predicted. It’s especially significant, the Atlantic explains, because anything below the 400,000 line is considered an indicator of “stable job growth.” The Dow, which has fallen for four straight days, rose on the news; it's currently up 76 points.

But don’t get too excited, because employers aren’t actually hiring, economists warn, so unemployment is likely to continue to remain close to 9%. “Layoffs clearly remain elevated, but the worst part of the adjustment to the first-half slowdown is abating,” one economist tells Bloomberg. ““I still don’t expect relief on the unemployment rate in the next few months.” (More jobless claims stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X