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From Friday's New York Daily News:
Jobless at 20 year high
Most unemployment claims since 1983
By JUDITH SCHOOLMAN
DAILY NEWS BUSINESS WRITER
Jobless claims have been rising this year.
In an ongoing sign of the weak economy, the number of Americans getting unemployment benefits hit the highest level in more than 20 years during the last week of May.
But on the upside, shoppers sent retail sales higher last month as the war in Iraq ended, the government said.
The employment picture remained gloomy as productivity improved but companies held back on hiring, awaiting firmer signs of economic strength, the Labor Department said in its weekly report on jobless claims.
The ranks of the unemployed rose to 3.8 million, the highest since early April 1983, from 3.68 million in the prior week, the Labor Department said.
Initial jobless claims fell in the latest week by 17,000 to 430,000, still above the 400,000 mark that indicates a weak labor market. New claims have been above 400,000 for 16 weeks in a row.
"The numbers are disappointing, but the reality is that the economy can sit around with a jobless recovery," said chief economist Bill Cheney of John Hancock Financial Services.
"As long as the job market doesn't collapse," Cheney said he had no worries about declines in consumer spending, or "a slide back into another recession."
Meanwhile, the nation's retail sales rose 0.1%, but would have risen even more had gas prices not declined, the Commerce Department said.
Sales fell 0.3% in April, while excluding autos, they fell 0.9%.
"It appears that consumers have begun to bounce back from the Iraq-induced doldrums," said National Retail Federation chief economist Rosalind Wells.
"What's most encouraging is that discretionary spending is up - clothing, appliances - which indicates consumers are feeling pretty confident," said Stephen Stanley, economist at Greenwich Capital.
Unemployment "is a lagging indicator, but it compels [stock market] traders to feel even more strongly that we're ripe" for an interest rate cut, said Brian Piskorowski, market strategist at Prudential Securities.
Economists said yesterday's economic numbers, along with anecdotes from the Fed's recent "beige book" report, suggested the central bank could cut interest rates by one-quarter point to 1%, a level last seen in the late 1950s when Dwight Eisenhower was president.
Wall Street payed more attention to Altria and AT&T than to the reports, see-sawing for much of the session.
The Dow added 13.33 to 9,196.55. The Nasdaq rose 7.60 to 1,653.62.
Altria fell 78 cents to $42.90 after the Illinois Supreme Court refused to hear its appeal of the $10 billion judgment against it in a smoking suit.
AT&T rose $1.03 to $21.53 on reports that the phone company could be a takeover target.
With Tom Van Riper
Originally published on June 13, 2003
Most unemployment claims since 1983
By JUDITH SCHOOLMAN
DAILY NEWS BUSINESS WRITER
Jobless claims have been rising this year.
In an ongoing sign of the weak economy, the number of Americans getting unemployment benefits hit the highest level in more than 20 years during the last week of May.
But on the upside, shoppers sent retail sales higher last month as the war in Iraq ended, the government said.
The employment picture remained gloomy as productivity improved but companies held back on hiring, awaiting firmer signs of economic strength, the Labor Department said in its weekly report on jobless claims.
The ranks of the unemployed rose to 3.8 million, the highest since early April 1983, from 3.68 million in the prior week, the Labor Department said.
Initial jobless claims fell in the latest week by 17,000 to 430,000, still above the 400,000 mark that indicates a weak labor market. New claims have been above 400,000 for 16 weeks in a row.
"The numbers are disappointing, but the reality is that the economy can sit around with a jobless recovery," said chief economist Bill Cheney of John Hancock Financial Services.
"As long as the job market doesn't collapse," Cheney said he had no worries about declines in consumer spending, or "a slide back into another recession."
Meanwhile, the nation's retail sales rose 0.1%, but would have risen even more had gas prices not declined, the Commerce Department said.
Sales fell 0.3% in April, while excluding autos, they fell 0.9%.
"It appears that consumers have begun to bounce back from the Iraq-induced doldrums," said National Retail Federation chief economist Rosalind Wells.
"What's most encouraging is that discretionary spending is up - clothing, appliances - which indicates consumers are feeling pretty confident," said Stephen Stanley, economist at Greenwich Capital.
Unemployment "is a lagging indicator, but it compels [stock market] traders to feel even more strongly that we're ripe" for an interest rate cut, said Brian Piskorowski, market strategist at Prudential Securities.
Economists said yesterday's economic numbers, along with anecdotes from the Fed's recent "beige book" report, suggested the central bank could cut interest rates by one-quarter point to 1%, a level last seen in the late 1950s when Dwight Eisenhower was president.
Wall Street payed more attention to Altria and AT&T than to the reports, see-sawing for much of the session.
The Dow added 13.33 to 9,196.55. The Nasdaq rose 7.60 to 1,653.62.
Altria fell 78 cents to $42.90 after the Illinois Supreme Court refused to hear its appeal of the $10 billion judgment against it in a smoking suit.
AT&T rose $1.03 to $21.53 on reports that the phone company could be a takeover target.
With Tom Van Riper
Originally published on June 13, 2003
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