Yet Another Misleading Jobs Report
Friday morning we got yet another employment report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that looks great on the surface, but not so good deep down in the data. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 252,000 and the unemployment rate fell to 5.6%. What’s not to like about that? In fact, you have to go all the way back to May 2008 to find a lower unemployment rate.
Here’s what’s not to like: The civilian labor force fell even though the civilian population increased. Even though the number of employed persons increased by 111,000, the number of people in the labor force decreased by 273,000. Think of it this way: There was an increase in the number of people working but an even bigger decrease in the number of people who are willing to work. The labor force participation rate fell to 62.7%.
What about wages? Because they were up in November, economists were hoping this was a trend. Not so. Average hourly wages fell in December by a nickel to $24.62. Average weekly earnings fell over the month by $1.73 to $850.12. It’s a good thing gasoline prices are down.
So once again we see that more jobs were created but even more people dropped out of the workforce. As I have explained before, retiring Baby Boomers explain only some of the decline in the participation rate. The remainder is due to people just giving up trying to find decent work. The job market is definitely better than it was, yet there is no way we could call it healthy.
Read Vahan’s blog at Janjig.com.
Vahan Janjigian is Chief Investment Officer at Greenwich Wealth Management, LLC, a SEC Registered Investment Adviser, where he manages portfolios for clients in separate accounts. Dr. Janjigian is a former Forbes magazine columnist and former Editor of the Forbes Special Situation Survey. According to Hulbert Interactive, his stock picks returned more than 18% annually during one of the market’s worst 10-year periods.
Dr. Janjigian holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and has earned degrees in general sciences and finance from Villanova University and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech). He previously served on the faculties of several universities, including the University of Delaware, Northeastern University, the American University of Armenia, and Boston College, where he taught courses in corporate finance, financial theory, investments, accounting, and economics; and he currently teaches a seminar on equity investment management to business executives in Singapore through Baruch College’s Zicklin School of Business. Dr. Janjigian has served as an expert witness on matters involving portfolio management, churning, suitability, and hedge fund manager compensation.
Dr. Janjigian has published his research in numerous scholarly and professional journals; and has been quoted in many leading newspapers and magazines, including Barron’s, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and USA Today. He appears as a guest commentator on various television and radio networks, including Fox, CNBC, MSNBC, and CBS Radio. Dr. Janjigian is the author of Even Buffett Isn’t Perfect (published by Penguin) and co-author of The Forbes/CFA Institute Investment Course (published by Wiley).
Trending Now on Affluent Christian Investor
Sorry. No data so far.
Right Report
![Biden Charged With HUMAN TRAFFICKING, Massive Investigation Underway! [VIDEOS]](https://americasfreedomfighters.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/10547-220x160.jpg)
Follow Us
The Affluent Mix
Biden Oblivious To Illegal Immigration Issues... August 2, 2021 | Frank Vernuccio
Rob Arnott On Bubbles, Inflation, And Once-In-A-Generation Investment Opportunit... August 2, 2021 | Jerry Bowyer
The Federal Reserve’s Massive Theft Of Stability... August 2, 2021 | Jim Huntzinger
What To Do About This Difficult Market? August 2, 2021 | David Bahnsen
Letter On The Politicization Of Corporations... July 26, 2021 | Jerry Bowyer
Peak Of The Fake Bull Market July 26, 2021 | Michael Pento
Woodrow Wilson’s Administrative State vs. Gold... July 26, 2021 | Jim Huntzinger
Dividends, Energy, And Crypto July 26, 2021 | David Bahnsen
Whose Side Are You On? July 26, 2021 | Frank Vernuccio
Media, Left Ignore These Dangers July 19, 2021 | Frank Vernuccio
Mark Skousen On FreedomFest And How To Measure The Whole Economy... July 19, 2021 | Jerry Bowyer
Quantifying The Quantitative, Or Making Easy The Easing... July 19, 2021 | David Bahnsen
The Gold Standard Means A Rising Standard Of Living... July 19, 2021 | Jim Huntzinger
Book Review: Brian Domitrovic Reveals The Monetary Genius Of Arthur Laffer... July 19, 2021 | John Tamny
Steve Forbes: Time To Worry About Inflation, Not Hyperinflation... July 12, 2021 | Jerry Bowyer
UFOs Rescue Biden July 12, 2021 | Frank Vernuccio
Read This Classical Economist’s 200 Year Old Warning About Paper Money... July 12, 2021 | Jim Huntzinger
How Central Banks Murdered The Markets July 12, 2021 | Michael Pento
Everything There Is To Know About The Stock Market... July 12, 2021 | David Bahnsen
AT&T CEO: We’re Ill Equipped For Politics, And We’re Spending A Lot Of ... July 6, 2021 | Jerry Bowyer
Internet Bias Distorts National Conversation... July 6, 2021 | Frank Vernuccio
The Halfway Point Of 2021 July 6, 2021 | David Bahnsen
Join the conversation!
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, vulgarity, profanity, all caps, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain a courteous and useful public environment where we can engage in reasonable discourse.