U.S. economy adds 157,000 jobs in January, jobless rate stable at 7.9 < br />

2013-02-02 13:37:18 GMT+7 (ICT)

WASHINGTON (BNO NEWS) -- The United States economy added 157,000 jobs in January, as the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 7.9 percent, the U.S. Labor Department (DoL) said Friday.

January's report marked 35 consecutive months of private sector job growth in which it has totaled to more than 6.1 million jobs. Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris highlighted the country's steady pace to recovery, with recent strengthening of the housing market, especially construction.

However, according to the DoL, in 2012, 2.25 million private sector jobs were added, averaging 187,500 per month, a higher rate than January's numbers, which is also lower than those reported in December 2012 (196,000).

On Thursday, the department revealed that initial claims for unemployment insurance in the week ending January 26 was 368,000, an increase of 38,000 from the previous week's unrevised figure of 330,000. The numbers come after jobless claims reached a five-year low earlier in the month.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2013-02-02

I hate to throw cold water on the Dem's celebration, but...

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8.5 Million Americans Left Labor Force In Obama's First Term

By Noel Sheppard | February 01, 2013 | 08:51

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released jobs numbers for January Friday showing that nonfarm payroll employment increased by 157,000 and the unemployment rate rose to 7.9 percent.

Lost in these headline numbers was another rise in the number of people not in the labor force.

This number now stands at a staggering 89 million, up from 80.5 million when President Obama took office.

This means that there are currently 8.5 million more Americans not in the labor force than just four years ago.

Read more: http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2013/02/01/85-million-americans-left-labor-force-obamas-first-term#ixzz2JjUV4gJ1

Dow back over 14,000 for the first time in a long while as well. Of course that might just be another bubble waiting to burst.

Dow back over 14,000 for the first time in a long while as well. Of course that might just be another bubble waiting to burst.

Which might seem to support the theory that the economy would recover on it's own if the federal government would just get the hell out of the way.

Following is an EDITORIAL piece from IBD. Warning, this could cause liberals' heads to explode.

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Latest Data Show Private Economy Can Grow Without Government

By Lawrence Kudlow

Thursday's report of a 0.1% gross domestic product decline for the fourth quarter came as a surprise to most forecasters. But it actually masks considerable strength in the private economy.

Namely, housing investment in the fourth quarter jumped 15.3% annually, business equipment and software spiked 12.4%, and real private final sales rose 2.6%. All in all, the domestic private sector of the economy increased 3.4% annually — a very respectable gain.

And here's one for the record books: Working ahead of year-end tax hikes, individuals shifted so much money to the fourth quarter at the 35% top rate that personal income grew by 7.9% annually — a huge number.

And there's more: In order to beat the taxman, dividend income rose 85.2% annually. You think tax incentives don't matter? Guess again.

Now, all this private-sector strength occurred despite that government spending — namely, military spending — dropped 6.6%. Inventories also lost ground. The trade deficit widened.

Read More At IBD: http://news.investor...m#ixzz2Jjgc0ZXf

Things are getting better all over. My deepest sympathies to those who will tediously persist on blaming Obama for everything, even GOOD news.

The general economic trends are now POSITIVE:

http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2013/02/01/february_jobs_report_157_000_new_jobs.html

Edited February 2, 201313 yr by Jingthing

Then, there is this...

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Gallup: 61% of Small Business ‘Worried’ Over Healthcare Costs -- 30% Not Hiring, Fear Going Out of Business

January 31, 2013

By Patrick Burke

(CNSNews.com) -- Sixty-one percent of U.S. small business owners said they were “worried about the potential cost of healthcare” and 56 percent said they were “worried about new government regulations,” according to the Wells Fargo/Gallup small business index released on Jan. 31, which also showed that 30 percent of small business owners are not hiring and fear going out of business within a year.

“At the bottom of the list, but still at a surprisingly high level, 30% of owners say they are not hiring because they are worried they may no longer be in business in 12 months,” according to Gallup’s index summary. “This is up from 24% who had the same worry in January 2012.”

Over the last 12 months, there have been more small business owners in the United States who reported they let workers go more than they hired new ones.

Although business owners cited usual reasons for not hiring more, such as not needing new personnel or sales not justifying new employees, owners also cited other reasons such as HEALTHCARE AND GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS. (caps added)

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/gallup-61-small-business-worried-over-healthcare-costs-30-not-hiring-fear-going-out

Things are getting better all over. My deepest sympathies to those who will tediously persist on blaming Obama for everything, even GOOD news.

The general economic trends are now POSITIVE:

http://www.slate.com...0_new_jobs.html

Maybe you can color this as GOOD news. Somehow I can't seem to muster the energy to do so.

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IRS: Parents Must Pay Federal Fine for Uninsured Kids

January 31, 2013

By Matt Cover

(CNSNews.com) – In new, final regulations issued Wednesday, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) said that parents must pay a federal fine under Obamacare if their children or dependent spouses are uninsured for any part of the year.

The regulations clarify provisions of Obamacare that seem to say that a parent will be held liable for Obamacare’s individual mandate penalty if they don’t have insurance coverage for their children.

In its final regulations, the IRS states that parents will be made to pay the penalty (called a "shared responsibility payment") if they can claim an uninsured child or spouse as a dependent, regardless of whether they actually claim them or not.

Read the article to see how much this legislation will cost you. http://cnsnews.com/news/article/irs-parents-must-pay-federal-fine-uninsured-kids

So that is the official pie in the sky figures, what are the real figures? Call me Dave is just the same, rampant inflation, especially with food and he's still able to deny it with a straight face.

Housing market is really picking up finally and new housing starts are hitting 1,000,000 in January after 954,000 in December which is highest in 6 years.

The lack of building and the slow down in construction and housing starts really decimated our employment rate. The recovery of the housing sector and construction sector will finally start getting a big chunk of that unemployment rate back to work.

Unfortunately, health care is a messy issue that very few understand. My firm does both regulation and the malpractice side. The system has been extremely broken for a while and needs a fix. No one will ever be happy regardless as to what is done here as someone is always going to complain when it impacts their pocket book.

I can go into the reality of health care costs and show that any small business really worried about such costs probably have a business that is no longer profitable or competitive due to factors like technology, economies of scale and inability to compete price wise with large businesses like Walmart, and competition with lower over head and no brick and mortar store front ala Internet.

Why complain about US when not here and really clueless about the reality here? High end restaurants are full, movies full, hotels full, sporting events full, transportation and travel sectors stronger, new construction including convention center and hotels around here and I don't really here anyone complaining. Families I know are buying houses with prices good and mortgage rates at 4 or less.

The reality is things are really improving here and I hear no negativity here unless you flip on to certain politically charged shows and people that make their money by causing worry and panic in those prone to such and drawn to negativity and hate ala Limbaugh and selfish tools like Rove.

Then again, there are those that still listen to and send money to televangelist and they are the one's primarily flipping back and forth between Fox and Jimmy Swaggart and wholesell buying everything said.

Edited February 2, 201313 yr by F430murci

So that is the official pie in the sky figures, what are the real figures? Call me Dave is just the same, rampant inflation, especially with food and he's still able to deny it with a straight face.

I agree that CPI is a moving target and the changes in methodology in 82 and 99 in particular have caused much controversy as to real CPI.

I cannot believe I am saying this, but I actually have confidence in the Feds ability to controls CPI at the present time. Inflation is certainly a concern due to QEI, II & III which was unfortunately necessary to save banking and mortgage industry. We would have been in bigger trouble and in a deeper recession or depression right now had the Government and Fed not figured out a way to keep banks, SM, FM, and GM solvent by resolving CMO problems.

So complaining about extra money in circulation is a but ungrateful as you would have to ignore the resolution of a much greater problem that could have quiet literally taken down not just the US, but the entire world banking and financial system. Every cichlids country banking system tied to US and China would have gone down.

I never believe anything the guvmint says. In real numbers the unemployment is closer to 20 to 25%. Just like illegals being 11 million is more like 20 million plus. It doesn't make sense that they would lie about everything they put out.....Just builds more mis-trust in them.

Things are getting better all over. My deepest sympathies to those who will tediously persist on blaming Obama for everything, even GOOD news.

The general economic trends are now POSITIVE:

http://www.slate.com...0_new_jobs.html

Yes, I'm sure the employees of these stores will take great comfort.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/eight-retailers-that-will-close-the-most-stores-173320796.html

Off-topic posts and replies deleted. The thread is about the economy adding jobs.

I never believe anything the guvmint says. In real numbers the unemployment is closer to 20 to 25%. Just like illegals being 11 million is more like 20 million plus. It doesn't make sense that they would lie about everything they put out.....Just builds more mis-trust in them.

1 in 4 or 1 in 5 is an amazingly high number. I know and come into contact with 100s on a weekly basis I only know 2 guys looking for jobs. One is on unemployment and won't take anything that pays anything bear unemployment and the other guy told me he is not taking a job at Macy's or something to fill in the gap. I think the 1st guy got a job back in his field here recently.

1 in 4 or 1 in 5 is great depression numbers and means us here in US would know a lot of people unemployed. That is not the way it is here.

Government cannot lie about those numbers and Wall Street would ferret that out pretty quickly as would politicians wanting to use bad information for personal gain.

Companies like Radio Shack are suffering due to outdated business model and products. We also have severe market saturation with consumer purchasing cheaper products from Internet drop shippers or companies not having to support costs of multiple brick and mortar sites throughout the country.

Business in US will really have to examine strategies to compete is this day and age here in the US. When something works, everyone rushes to that and saturates.

Yes, the Internet is doing to Main St. Tech shops what the Walmarts have done to Mom and Pop stores. (I tried to make that as American as possible, but the same has happened in the UK with and Amazon and Tesco).

I think they forgot to tell everyone that the population also grew by about the same amount or more. So, there has been NO recovery. In fact, incomes keep falling and living standards are worsening by the day. Very sad situation which the government there refuses to acknowledge.

The Bureau of Statistics just moves people out of the workforce category if out of work for a long time, it is in reality much worse. Whats more many jobs are part time which is a worrying trend occurring. In other words the statistics lie.

Ben is printing but getting less GDP per buck as time goes by, also GDP includes the massive government spending and still is now going backwards.

Debt is now counted in the trillions. The stock market is a manufactured bubble and certainly no indication of strength. With interest at zero only the banksters are making money. Long term pensions are unfunded, states amd municipalities are going bankrupt.

You could write books on this stuff, that economy is stuffed, just like Europe and Japan, just waiting for the piper. If some one can actually get excited about any western economic news then they either live in denial or are unwavering optimists.

The Bureau of Statistics just moves people out of the workforce category if out of work for a long time, it is in reality much worse. Whats more many jobs are part time which is a worrying trend occurring. In other words the statistics lie.

Ben is printing but getting less GDP per buck as time goes by, also GDP includes the massive government spending and still is now going backwards.

Debt is now counted in the trillions. The stock market is a manufactured bubble and certainly no indication of strength. With interest at zero only the banksters are making money. Long term pensions are unfunded, states amd municipalities are going bankrupt.

You could write books on this stuff, that economy is stuffed, just like Europe and Japan, just waiting for the piper. If some one can actually get excited about any western economic news then they either live in denial or are unwavering optimists.

This sounds as if you read and regurgitated an outdated article by Alex Jones and has little to do with the reality of corporate balance sheets at present, the reality of where QE funds flowed and why QE was necessary, and Meredith Whitney's 2010 municple bond forecast never materialized.

I am still at a loss at how people on the other side of the world have all of this insight about true unemployment here. Things were bad, no doubt, but right now people seem to have gotten back to work and I rarely if ever hear people complain about an inability to find jobs now.

Dow back over 14,000 for the first time in a long while as well. Of course that might just be another bubble waiting to burst.

That's merely a symptom of permanently high (and understated) inflation due to money printing, which is used to generate non-profitable jobs out of thin air. It's a classic snake oil potion selling scheme, yet these days it's labelled 'progressive'.

Dow back over 14,000 for the first time in a long while as well. Of course that might just be another bubble waiting to burst.

That's merely a symptom of permanently high (and understated) inflation due to money printing, which is used to generate non-profitable jobs out of thin air. It's a classic snake oil potion selling scheme, yet these days it's labelled 'progressive'.

Inflation can compress P/E ratios and can be bad for equities. If we were truly in inflation, people in the know would be in a rotation from equities to commodities. Interests rates would also be rising if there was true concern for inflation.

You are wrong about the effects and purpose of QE. Most of this is actually ending up on foreign bank reserve balance sheets and was meant to assist in paying off bad CMO obligations. China was a huge holder of CMOs.

I am hearing from my investment banker wife that some $207 billion of QE3 have made it to foreign bank balance sheets in just the last 4 weeks. This is the second highest surge of foreign balance sheets since the AIG bailout.

The Fed is quietly keeping the world banking system liquid and reserves in line yet you guys bitch.

Edited February 5, 201313 yr by F430murci

Dow back over 14,000 for the first time in a long while as well. Of course that might just be another bubble waiting to burst.

That's merely a symptom of permanently high (and understated) inflation due to money printing, which is used to generate non-profitable jobs out of thin air. It's a classic snake oil potion selling scheme, yet these days it's labelled 'progressive'.

Steely and I often disagree but, not this particular time.