Most of the net new jobs came from the private sector -- excluding temporary Census workers -- non-farm jobs rose by 224,000, the Labor Department said on Friday.
In addition, payroll data for the prior two months was revised to show that 121,000 additional jobs were created than initially reported. The Labor Department said 230,000 jobs were created in March, instead of the original figure of 162,000, and the February measure was revised from a loss of 14,000 to a gain of 39,000.
As we speculated back in November 2009, net jobs growth began around Christmas and hiring has now netted new jobs in the first four months of the year. The additions reverse nearly two straight years of net job losses.
The string of employment growth represents the best four-month performance for jobs increases in 10 years. The return to jobs growth following a recession is perhaps one of the swiftest on record in the U.S.
Many naysayers scoffed at our linear trending charts claiming that a return to substantial jobs additions by spring 2010 was too optimistic. The reality is that the positive trend toward strong jobs creation continues -- with summer projections for U.S. labor market improvement firmer than ever.
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Hey GNE -
ReplyDeleteAre you worried much about the stability/confidence in the markets after last week?
-Rof
Hi Rof,
ReplyDeleteNo. You will see from some of the dialog here that I believe the Greece news to be nowhere near the magnitude of what we saw with the credit crisis of 2008 and 2009.
Bill is also a faithful follower here and is also concerned about the outcome of the crisis.
I maintain that once the assistance package is clearly defined for Greece, the uncertainty of that countries default will be quickly contained.
Look for an article later today/tomorrow on why clarity and certainty around that will calm the equity markets... likely by the opening tomorrow...
What is also a bit unnerving to the markets are the continued uncertainty around what was likely a technology glitch on Thursday. Once both the Nasdaq and NYSE clearly explain what happened (and what they will put it place to assure it doesn't happen again) markets will return to normalcy... it is less unclear to me when they will come forth with those answers... but my bet is that volatility will remain until they do.
GNE
Eldon,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments. I do hope people keep cool during the uncertainty. It just seems that the markets don't have the confidence yet to resist fears, whether overblown or not. It would be nice to focus back on the improving fundamentals.
Hi Eldon,
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think of May's weak job's report? My personal opinion is that, while it is weak, the over 400,000 temporary jobs will provide a boost the economy needs. Although most will last 2-3 months only, it will bring a surge in spending which will create an improvement in the future jobs reports, which will allow it to absorb the temporary workers when they leave the census. What do you think?
Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. The trend line over time continues to be quite strong in the positive direction. I would not be surprised to see today's number revised upward and next month's number to be well north of 500,000. A