Jobs -- "total non-farm":
The Washington Post's graphic is prettier (Christmas colors!) and clearer that the BLS's chart, above. The source for the numbers is the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The unemployment rate fell to 7 percent, its lowest level in exactly five years, from 7.3 percent. The nation added 203,000 jobs last month, nearly identical to October's numbers and affirming that hiring is starting to happen at a steady clip. Revisions to previous months' data was slightly positive. Americans are working more hours, for slightly higher wages. ...WaPo
There is a price to be paid, though, in what kind of interest we can look forward to if the Fed eases its economic stimulus.
Still, many observers cautioned the encouraging figures from the Labor Department on Friday do not necessarily mean the central bank will act when policy makers meet later this month. A move early next year, they said, is more likely.
While the 203,000 jump in payrolls in November was an improvement over the 158,000-a-month rate that prevailed in the summer, it is not much better than the 198,000 level in the first nine months of 2013.
“We think the chance of tapering this month has risen, but on balance we expect the Fed to wait a bit longer,” said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. ...NYT
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There is a downside. Greg Sargent reports on how the sequester will be traded in for more spending ... But unemployment insurance?
Negotiators are close to a deal to replace the sequester with higher spending levels on domestic and defense programs — close to $1 trillion — for fiscal 2014. The deal would boost spending by increasing some fees, deferring the big arguments over whether to raise taxes and/or cut entitlements.
Unfortunately, an extension of unemployment benefits that are set to expire for at least 1.3 million people is currently not in the deal.
To put this in perspective, consider the following: If Congress really does punt on extending the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, it will be the first time in many decades that it has failed to do so under conditions this bad for the jobless.
The White House has released a report on the need to extend these benefits ...GregSargent,WaPo
In other words, we can breathe again, but only in shallow breaths and intermittently. The New Yorker has a cartoon today that pretty much sums up the jobs situation.
