If you’re inclined to optimism, you can argue that today’s update on initial jobless claims isn’t signaling a new recession after all. True, new filings for jobless benefits rose slightly last week by 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 427,000. That’s still too high to encourage forecasts of robust growth in either the labor market or the economy overall. But for the moment, the number du jour doesn’t provide much support for arguing that the recent stumble in the economy is getting worse. The trend isn’t necessarily getting better either, unfortunately, which leaves us betwixt and between and waiting for the next update.
Daily Archives: June 9, 2011
Kansas City Fed: Financial Stress Fell In May
Economic growth appears to be slowing, as recent indicators suggest, but the financial markets are keeping a stiff upper lip. Credit markets don’t look particularly anxious, at least not yet, and the same can be said for the stock market, despite its recent wobbles. Additional support for the bright side via markets arrived with yesterday’s update of the Kansas City Fed’s Financial Stress Index (KCFSI).