Latest Indicators: Jobless Claims Dip; Trade Gap Grows; Housing Starts Up

Jobless claims fall, regional manufacturing up
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – New U.S. claims for jobless aid fell last week and factory activity in the country's Mid-Atlantic region grew at its quickest pace in more than 5-1/2 years this month, indicating the Economic Recovery is gaining traction. Thursday's data added to views that growth in the Fourth Quarter could accelerate to a 3.5 percent rate from the 2.5 percent pace in prior period, even though a housing report pointed to continued stress in the sector. "Data so far on...

Economic data
Before I quickly comment on Housing Starts, Bankrate.com last night said the average 30 yr Mortgage rate jumped 19 bps to 5.19%, the highest since April 21st. Nov Housing Starts totaled 555k annualized, 5k above expectations but Permits at 530k were 30k below forecasts and is the obvious precursor to Starts. Permits are just 8k above at least a 50 year low. Starts and Permits for single family homes did rise. It was the multi family category that saw a drop in both starts and permits. For the ...

Fewer Jobless Claims Cap Strong Week for Economy
Thursday, December 16, 2010 By Christopher S. Rugaber, Associated Press In this Dec. 15, 2010 photo, Jesse Paloger holds up a sign while standing on Wall Street as he hopes to find a job, in New York. Paloger, who has an Accounting and economics degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara, has written on the bottom of his sign, "Go-getter from California looking for my shot!" Fewer people applied for Unemployment Benefits last week, the third drop in the past four week...

Housing Starts and New Permits Remain Weak in November
As the Housing Market continues to sputter, new construction has been very slow. Although Housing Starts rose 3.9% in November to 555,000, they didn't nearly overcome the 13.0% decline experienced over the two months prior. The Census Bureau also reports that new permits, which are more of a leading indicator, fell by 4.0% last month. The new home construction market remains relatively lifeless. While it might seem that there could be reason to hope for a new trend here, given the small rise in...

Jobless Claims At 420K, On Expectations Of 425K, As Current Account And Building Permits Miss, Starts In Line; 894K People Added
Initial claims - link Housing Starts and building permits release - link Current account statement - link ...

Instant view: Weekly jobless claims stuck at 420,000
NEW YORK (Reuters) - First-time claims for jobless benefits were essentially unchanged in the latest week, cementing a recent downward trend that remains too modest to bring down Unemployment. Housing Starts rose slightly more than expected in November, but a surprise drop in permits for future home construction to a 1-1/2 year low indicated continued weakness in the Housing Market even as the Economic Recovery gains traction. KEY POINTS: * Initial claims dipped slightly to 420,000 in the week e...

Summary Box: Stocks rise on jobs news
THAWING Job Market: First-time claims for Unemployment Benefits fell last week for the third time in four weeks, the Labor Department said. Separately, the Commerce Department said that Housing Starts rose for the first time in two months. CARDS SLASHED: Card companies tumbled after the Federal Reserve proposed a 12-cent cap on the fees that merchants pay every time a customer uses a debit card. Visa Inc. tumbled 12.7 percent and MasterCard Inc. fell 10.3 percent. SHIPPING OUT: FedEx Corp. upp...

Housing Starts increase slightly in November
by CalculatedRisk on 12/16/2010 08:57:00 AM Click on graph for larger image in new window. Total Housing Starts were at 555 thousand (SAAR) in November, up 3.9% from the revised October rate of 534 thousand, and up 16% from the all time record low in April 2009 of 477 thousand (the Lowest Level since the Census Bureau began tracking Housing Starts in 1959). The increase this month was due to single-family starts, but the level is still very low. Single-family starts increased 6.9% to 465 thou...

Jobless Claims Fall for the Second Week in a Row
Jobless claims fell to 420,000 from 423,000 last week, making it the second-lowest seven-day period of the year. Claims were expected to rise over that period, so when they declined for the second week in a row, Economists reacted with optimistic surprise (in the four-week moving average of initial claims, a less erratic statistic, the numbers looked good too). Of course, claims need to drop by about ten times that amount to signal a sustained recovery in the Job Market and a notable dent in the...

Yippee! 3,000 Fewer New Jobless Claims
From the always in there pitching Associated Press: Fewer people apply for Unemployment Benefits By Christopher S. Rugaber, AP Economics Writer 2010 WASHINGTON - Fewer people applied for Unemployment benefits last week, the third drop in the past four weeks and a sign that the Job Market is slowly improving . Weekly claims for jobless aid dipped by 3,000 to a seasonally adjusted 420,000 in the week ending Dec. 11, the Labor Department said Thursday . By the way, last week’s number ...

Initial Jobless Claims Fall Again, to 420,000
The labor market showed more progress in the latest initial Jobless Claims numbers, which fell again, by 3,000 to 420,000. The more-telling four-week moving average declined by another 5,250 to 422,750. That's its Lowest Level since August 2008. Economists emphasize the more-telling four-week moving average because it smooths out one-time anomalies. A Bloomberg survey had expected new claims to total 420,000. The previous week's total was revised 2,000 higher to 423,000. Continuing claims ros...

Jobless claims decline slightly to 420,000
In the week ending Dec. 11, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 420,000, a decrease of 3,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 423,000. The 4-week moving average was 422,750, a decrease of 5,250 from the previous week’s revised average of 428,000. This move downward is consistent with the slow trend toward a weak jobs market from a terrible one. Last month saw fewer than 50,000 jobs added to non-farm Payrolls. This is weak by any classification of a...

Housing starts up, permits off in November
Published: Dec. 16, 2010 at 2:38 PM Former President Jimmy Carter works on a house as part of the Habitat for Humanity Carter Work Project in Northeast Washington, D.C., on October 4, 2010. Carter and his wife Rosalynn are helping to build six homes and rehabilitate six others in the Ivy City neighborhood. UPI/Roger L. Wollenberg WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- New U.S. home construction rose in November compared to October but permits issued fell sharply, the Commerce Department said Thursday. At ...

A Closer Look at the G.D.P.
As the end of the year approaches, it seems appropriate to look at The Economy from a macro-perspective - that is, at the level of gross domestic product or G.D.P. - to determine if The Economy is growing, and if so, what G.D.P. components are contributing to growth. While this is not a definitive analysis of the economy, it does show if things are moving in the right direction. All of the statistical information that follows is from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, or B.E.A., and is...

Strong week for economy raises optimism for 2011
WASHINGTON -- Buoyed by a string of hopeful government reports on layoffs, factory production and Consumer Spending, Economists are predicting that hiring and even housing will pick up in 2011 and make it a better year after all. The reports issued this week, along with a tax-cut plan that Congress is set to pass, point to stronger overall growth next year, experts say. Growth "has improved as the year is coming to an end," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics. &qu...;

Jobless Claims in U.S. Unexpectedly Fell to 420,000 Last Week
The number of U.S. workers filing first-time claims for Unemployment Benefits unexpectedly declined last week, pointing to a labor market that is on the mend....

Weekly Jobless Claims Stuck at 420K
First-time claims for U.S. jobless benefits were essentially unchanged in the latest week, cementing a recent downward trend that remains too modest to bring down Unemployment. Initial claims dipped slightly to 420,000 in the week ended Dec. 11, matching the median forecast in a Reuters poll of Economists, from a revised 423,000 in the prior week. However, continuing claims, which exclude the millions of Americans relying on extended benefits, rose to 4.14 million in the week ended Dec. 4. That ...

Weekly jobless claims stuck at 420,000
WASHINGTON | Thu Dec 16, 2010 8:48am EST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - First-time claims for jobless benefits were essentially unchanged in the latest week, cementing a recent downward trend that remains too modest to bring down Unemployment. Initial claims dipped slightly to 420,000 in the week ended December 11, matching the median forecast in a Reuters poll of Economists, from a revised 423,000 in the prior week. However, continuing claims, which exclude the millions of Americans relying on exten...

Obamanomics Changes Dynamics Of Letters To Santa
Old and busted: An Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle! New and sad: Kids write Santa this year for basic needs instead of toysSanta Claus and his elves are seeing more heartbreaking letters this year as Children cite their parents' economic troubles in their wish lists. U.S. Postal Service workers who handle letters addressed to Santa at the North Pole say more letters ask for basics — coats, socks and shoes — rather than Barbie dolls, Video Game...

Unemployment claims drift lower
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The number of Americans filing for their first week of Unemployment Benefits unexpectedly fell for a second straight week last week, according to a government report released Thursday. The number of initial claims fell to 420,000 in the week ending Dec. 11, down 3,000 from 423,000 claims filed the week before, the Labor Department said. It was the second Lowest Level of the year. Email Print Comment Economists surveyed by Briefing.com were expecting 425,000 new clai...

Housing starts rise in November, but permits drop
WASHINGTON | Thu Dec 16, 2010 8:51am EST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Housing Starts rose slightly more than expected in November, but a surprise drop in permits for future home construction to a 1-1/2 year low indicated continued weakness in the Housing Market even as the Economic Recovery gains traction. The Commerce Department said on Thursday housing starts rose 3.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 555,000 units. October's starts were revised up to a 534,000-unit pace from the pr...

Housing Starts Growth Beats Expectations in November
In the beleaguered U.S. housing sector, even modest good news -- such as November's unexpected 3.9% rise in Housing Starts to a 555,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate -- represents a victory. Adding a bit to that small win, October's total also was revised modestly higher to 534,000 from the initially estimated 519,000 tally. In November, starts of single-family homes totaled a 465,000 rate, up 6.9% from October's revised 435,000 rate. Economists survey by Bloomberg had expected November hou...

Housing starts edge higher
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- New home construction is not dead, just resting comfortably. The number of new private home starts rose in November to a seasonably adjusted annualized rate of 555,000, according to a Commerce Department report. That was 3.9% above revised October figures but 5.8% lower than a year ago. Email Print Comment The numbers were higher than expected. A consensus of housing industry experts surveyed by Briefing.com had predicted 545,000 starts for the month. New construction...

Two of three major indexes hit highest levels since 2008
Stocks closed at two-year highs Thursday, with two of the three major indexes hitting their highest levels since September 2008. Investors looked on the brighter side of mixed reports on housing and jobs that came out before the opening bell. The Dow Jones industrial average closed 41 points higher, or less than 0.4%, to end at 11,499.25 - the highest close since Sept. 8, 2008. The S&P 500 gained 8 points, or 0.6%, to 1,242.87, its highest closing level since Sept. 19, 2008. The tech-heavy N...

First-time jobless claims fall by 3,000
Published: Dec. 16, 2010 at 10:35 AM Tourists get off a trolley past banners that spell the word "JOBS" hanging from the front of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce a block from the White House in Washington on September 5, 2010. As Labor Day approaches tomorrow reports indicate that while private job growth was up The Economy overall lost another 54,000 jobs in August. UPI/Roger L. Wollenberg WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Labor said Thursday first-time claims for joble...