This morning’s update on initial jobless claims suggests that our previous anxiety over the recent rise in new filings for unemployment benefits was a false alarm. Good thing, too, since being right would have meant looking at a much bigger problem. Fortunately, the Labor Department reports today that new claims dropped last week to 442,000, or down 14,000 from the week before. Except for the first week of February, that’s the lowest reading since this data series peaked in March 2009. A collective sigh is in order, or so it seems.
Daily Archives: March 25, 2010
WHO IS JANET YELLEN?
The White House says that San Francisco Fed president Janet Yellen is President Obama’s leading candidate for vice chairman of the Fed—the number two spot after Fed Chairman Bernanke. The open position comes by way of the retiring Fed governor Donald Kohn, who plans to step down in June. Meantime, Yellen says she’ll accept if nominated.