Jobs report

[jpl458]

303,000 New jobes were added in march. A number which was reporting as Whopping, although all those jobs were not at Burger King. Not bad for failing Presidency.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

Let's wait to see how many old jobs get terminated now that California, a Liberal Democratic state, has a $20/hour minimum wage that even covers fast-food workers.

 

[AccessBlaster]

Yup, coming to a town near you.

 

[jpl458]

Yup, coming to a town near you.

I know, crime is down, jobs are up, stocks at an all time high, (except for DJT) and there are no migrants in my bushes.

 

[AccessBlaster]

I know, crime is down, jobs are up, stocks at an all time high, (except for DJT) and there are no migrants in my bushes.

If you could just convince the independent voters

 

[Steve R.]

Analysis: Grocery Prices Nearing 40 Percent Higher Than In 2019

A $100 grocery haul in 2019 costs almost $140 today for the same common items, causing consumers to "become creative to cope."

www.breitbart.com

99 Cents Only Stores to close all 371 spots in 'extremely difficult decision,' CEO says

The retail chain, once known for its below $1 prices, announced the closure of all 371 locations on Thursday. It's unclear how many people are losing their jobs.

www.usatoday.com

 

[Pat Hartman]

I know, crime is down,

When you don't consider breaking laws to be a "crime", then crimes are down

 

[jpl458]

If you could just convince the independent voters

I believe that is happening. It just occurred to me that you and Pat have IBS, Irritable Biden SYndrome.

 

[AccessBlaster]

That's funny!

 

[AccessBlaster]

I believe that is happening.

So you think independents like me are getting on board the Biden train?

 

[jpl458]

That's funny!

Glad we could laugh together

 

[AccessBlaster]

Yup

 

[The_Doc_Man]

Irritable Biden SYndrome.

And, similar to its near-namesake, it leads to the spewing of smelly ideas.

 

[AccessBlaster]

Just the tip of Biden's economic iceberg

"99 Cents Only will be closing all of its stores as the company announced plans to wind down its business operations.
The company, which was founded in 1982, operates 371 stores across California, Texas, Arizona and Nevada.
On Thursday, the company officially announced plans to close down, citing financial difficulties stemming from the pandemic, changing consumer demand, and rising inflation."

14,000 employees could be affected. I wonder if those employees feel better off under Biden?

 

[Steve R.]

Ford to lose $3 billion from EV sales to consumers this year​

Apple lays off over 600 employees in California after abandoning electric car project | TechCrunch

Apple is laying off 614 employees in California in its first major round of job cuts post-pandemic, according to a WARN notice.

techcrunch.com

Rivian says it is laying off 10 percent of its workforce as EV woes deepen

Rivian said its production would stay flat in 2024.

www.theverge.com

Stellantis announces mass layoffs in US and Europe

Stellantis fired 400 US tech workers on Friday followed today by mass layoffs in Italy due to what it says are slow sales of its Fiat 500e.

electrek.co

 

[Steve R.]

Based on continued increasing credit card debt, consumers are spending more than they earn. At some undefined future point, consumers will eventually run-out of credit and will no longer be able to spend. A recession may then materialize.
The fact that the economy, today, appears like it is doing well, could be considered an illusion since it is being financed by debt.

Graphics show how Americans' total credit card debt reached record high

Card debt jumped $50 billion to a record high between Q3 and Q4 2023, Federal Reserve says.

www.usatoday.com

"Credit card delinquencies, the amount of time in which cardholders fall behind in making payments, also increased. The percentage of card delinquencies 90 days or more rose to 6.4% from 4% in the fourth quarter of 2022."

The increases in card debt show higher financial stress "especially among younger and lower-income households,” said Wilbert van der Klaauw, a Fed economic research adviser, the Associated Press reported.

"Nearly one-tenth of credit card users find themselves in 'persistent debt' where they are charged more in interest and fees each year than they pay toward the principal," the bureau said.

 

[Isaac]

303,000 New jobes were added in march. A number which was reporting as Whopping, although all those jobs were not at Burger King. Not bad for failing Presidency.

Too bad 303,000 willing workers weren't added.

Our problem these days isn't unemployment, nor is U/E a useful metric any more. It's labor participation.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

303,000 New jobes were added in march. A number which was reporting as Whopping, although all those jobs were not at Burger King. Not bad for failing Presidency.

Not good for a failing presidency.

 

[Pat Hartman]

Here's the labor participation rate. The country fell apart in 2020 over the COVID shutdowns. Those were mostly full time jobs lost. They are gradually coming back as part time jobs. They aren't "new" jobs. They are old jobs that are now part time and pay less so you need several. the 300,000 number doesn't account for which are part time and how many people hold multiple part time jobs.

Notice that the labor participation rate has been in decline since the crash of 2008. It started coming back gradually during the Trump administration until COVID stopped the growth.

Civilian labor force participation rate

www.bls.gov

 

[Steve R.]

Here’s where the jobs are for March 2024 — in one chart
Headlines may be glowing, but that glow can be blinding the reader as to what is really happening with the economy. A deeper dive is necessary. I won't be doing that, but I will be offering some generalized speculative thoughts based on the chart contained in the report above.

Manufacturing showed no job creation for March 2024. Job growth in manufacturing would be a key element to GDP growth. Data for one month does not mean much, but the lack of growth in this sector implies that the US economy is not producing more. That is subjectively bad news.

Health care + social assistance shows significant job growth, but is it really job growth that adds to the GDP or is it new jobs created by federal deficit spending that is not really a reflection of supply vs. demand. To translate, the federal government is artificially creating these jobs to provide "unnecessary" services. As a subjective example, providing unjustified services to illegal immigrants. These services may not be enhancing the economy.

Construction shows job growth that would help with GDP growth. However, like health care, how much of this growth is artificial in the sense that it is being funded by deficit federal spending?