Stagnation… That’s really the only way to describe today’s jobs report. The U.S. economy shed 95,000 more jobs last month and the number of underemployed grew by 612,000, and now stands at 9.5 million people:
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The U.S. economy lost 95,000 nonfarm jobs in September as local and state governments shed positions at a faster rate than the private sector was adding, the Labor Department reported Friday.
The drop of 95,000 was much wider than the 8,000 decline expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch, and the 57,000 jobs lost in August.
The nation’s unemployment rate remained steady at 9.6% as fewer new workers joined the labor market than in the previous month. Economists had expected a slight increase in the jobless rate.
Unemployment has now been above 9.5% for 14 straight months, as the Associated Press notes that’s the longest since the 1930s.
As a practical matter, with the mid-term elections just a month, this isn’t good news incumbent Democrats seeking re-election. They’re controlled Congress and the nation’s purse strings since January 2007 and what do have to show for it? I mean other than 14 months of 9.5% plus unemployment and a stagnant economy?
Related
- Gallup Finds U.S. Unemployment at 10.1% in September – Gallup
- Will election workers skew Friday job stats? – New York Post
- Job losses in 2009 likely bigger than thought – Reuters
- Dollar’s Fall Roils World – Wall Street Journal (Subscription Required)
- Greenspan Says U.S. Creating `Scary’ Deficit By Borrowing – Bloomberg