Economic and jobs news thread

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weatheriscool
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Growth in US manufacturing accelerated in August
Source: AP

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER
WASHINGTON (AP) — Growth in U.S. manufacturing accelerated in August despite the fact that companies were still struggling with supply chain problems.

The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing managers, said Wednesday that its index of manufacturing activity rose 0.4 percentage point in August to 59.9. Manufacturing had seen a slowdown in July when activity dipped to 59.5 from 60.6 in June.

Any reading above 50 indicates growth in the manufacturing sector. August marked the 15th consecutive month that manufacturing has grown after contracting in April 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic triggered nationwide business shutdowns.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/business-hea ... 9c65d05a89
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caltrek
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U.S. Added 235,000 Jobs in August, a Massive Slowdown
by Felix Ssalmon
September 3, 2021

https://www.axios.com/august-jobs-repor ... f271c.html

Introduction:
(Axios) The U.S. economy added a meager 235,000 jobs in August, while the unemployment rate fell from 5.4% to 5.2%, the government said Friday.

Why it matters: It's the first jobs report to factor in the extent of the COVID-19 surge driven by the Delta variant — showing a massive slowdown in the recovery after July's blockbuster jobs report. Economists had expected 725,000 jobs to be added.

The big picture: The pandemic is far from over, and it's still hobbling the American economic recovery. This weak report will dissuade the Federal Reserve from pulling back on the amount of cash it's injecting into the economy every month.

By the numbers: June saw 962,000 new jobs added, and July did even better with 1.05 million. In August, however, the pace of change slowed dramatically, with a gain of just 235,000 jobs — and none at all in the leisure and hospitality industries.
  • The other side: Wage growth was very strong, with earnings rising 0.6% in a single month, or 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. The unemployment rate also continued to decline, hitting a new pandemic-era low of 5.2%.
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caltrek
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Biden: "No question" Delta Variant is to Blame for Poor Jobs Report
by Jacob Knudson
September 3, 2021

https://www.axios.com/biden-jobs-report ... 2c79d.html

Introduction:
(Axios) There is "no question" that the Delta variant is to blame for the disappointing August jobs report, President Biden said in remarks on Friday, a fact that he argued underscores the importance of continuing to vaccinate Americans and passing his economic agenda.
Don't mourn, organize.

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caltrek
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'Happy Labor Day Everyone!': Millions Lose Unemployment Aid on Worker Holiday
by John Queally
September 6, 2021

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/ ... er-holiday

Introduction:
(Common Dreams) Progressives and economic experts fumed Monday as boosted unemployment aid—which has kept millions of workers, their families, and the overall economy afloat during the Covid-19 pandemic—came to an unceremonious end despite the persistence of the virus and a stalled economic recovery.

"Happy Labor Day everyone!" tweeted Matt Bruenig, founder of the left-leaning People's Policy Project, in a sarcastic declaration early on Labor Day. "Today, 9.3 million unemployed workers will have their benefits cut, depriving them and 26 million members of their household of income."
As CNN reports:
  • Nearly 18 months after Congress came to the rescue of jobless Americans, its historic expansion of the nation's unemployment benefits system expired nationwide this weekend. Lawmakers, who extended the three pandemic programs in December and March, are not expected to renew them again.
  • A key component of the relief effort was a federal weekly supplement for out-of-work Americans. Initially, the jobless received a $600-a-week boost from April through July of 2020. Congress then revived the enhancement in late December but reduced it to $300 a week.
  • Lawmakers also created two other measures to aid the jobless when the coronavirus struck. The Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program provided payments for freelancers, the self-employed, independent contractors and certain people affected by the outbreak, while the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program extended payments for those who've exhausted their regular state benefits.
Don't mourn, organize.

-Joe Hill
weatheriscool
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Another record for US job openings; 10.9 million in July
Source: AP

By PAUL WISEMAN

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers posted a record job openings for the second consecutive month in July — more affirmation that the labor market is bouncing back from last year’s coronavirus recession.

Job openings rose to 10.9 million in July, up from the previous record of 10.2 million in June, the Labor Department reported Wednesday.

But the department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report showed that actual hiring dipped slightly to 6.7 million in July, from 6.8 million in June. Layoffs rose slightly to 1.3 million.

Nearly 4 million people quit their jobs, just shy of a record set in April, and up from 3.9 million in June. That suggests many Americans are confident enough in their prospects to seek something new.




Read more: https://apnews.com/article/business-hea ... 1b0e3cfcf1
weatheriscool
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Producer inflation accelerated in August, as wholesale prices rose record 8.3% from a year ago
Source: CNBC

Prices that producers get for final demand goods and services surged in August at their highest annual rate since at least 2010, the Labor Department reported Friday.

The producer price index rose 0.7% for the month, above the 0.6% Dow Jones estimate, though below the 1% increase in July.

On a year-over-year basis, the gauge rose 8.3%, which is the biggest annual increase since records have been kept going back to November 2010. That came following a 7.8% move higher in July, which also set a record.

The data comes amid heightened inflation fears fed by supply chain issues, a shortage of various consumer and producer goods and heightened demand related to the Covid-19 pandemic. Federal Reserve officials expect inflationary pressures to ease through the year, but they have remained stubbornly persistent, with Friday’s numbers indicating that the trend likely will continue.

Excluding food, energy and trade services, final demand prices increased 0.3% for the month, below the 0.5% Dow Jones estimate. Still, that left core PPI up 6.3% from a year ago, also the largest record increase for data going back to August 2014.
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/10/august- ... ecord.html
weatheriscool
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U.S. core consumer prices slow sharply in August

Tue, September 14, 2021, 8:37 AM · 3 min read
WASHINGTON, Sept 13 (Reuters) - Underlying U.S. consumer prices increased at their slowest pace in six months in August, suggesting that inflation had probably peaked, though it could remain high for a while amid persistent supply constraints.

The Labor Department said on Tuesday its Consumer Price Index excluding the volatile food and energy components edged up 0.1% last month. That was the smallest gain since February and followed a 0.3% rise in July. The so-called core CPI increased 4.0% on a year-on-year basis after advancing 4.3% in July.

The overall CPI rose 0.3% last month after gaining 0.5% in July. In the 12 months through August, the CPI increased 5.3% after soaring 5.4% year-on-year in July.
{snip}

Read more: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/u-core-c ... 26205.html
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Yuli Ban
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China Evergrande contagion concerns rile global markets
Growing fears of China Evergrande defaulting rattled global markets on Monday as investors worried about the potential impact on the wider economy dumped Chinese property stocks and sought refuge in safe-haven assets.

Shares in Evergrande (3333.HK), which has been scrambling to raise funds to pay its many lenders, suppliers and investors, closed down 10.2% at HK$2.28 on Monday, after earlier plummeting 19% to its weakest level since May 2010.

Regulators have warned that its $305 billion of liabilities could spark broader risks to China's financial system if its debts are not stabilised.
And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future
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Yuli Ban
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China Evergrande Is a Big Problem for the Market. These Charts Show Just How Big.
For investors, the weather has turned ominous. Credit problems at real estate developer China Evergrande have stoked fears of contagion and a looming debt crisis in China. Investors—to cope—are going to have to watch credit default swaps again—just like they did a decade or so ago. Picking the right CDS will help investors determine just how bad the panic is getting.

A credit default swap is just what it sounds like. One party swaps the risk of a debt default with another party. It’s an insurance product. A CDS buyer is, essentially, taking out life insurance on a bond they own.

The CDS to watch isn’t China Evergrande (ticker: 3333.Hong Kong), however, That won’t tell investors anything they don’t already know. Evergrande stock is at a new 52-week low Monday, down another 10% in overseas trading. Shares are now down almost 90% from their October 2020 52-week high of $20.40 Hong Kong dollars per share.

The problem is too much debt. With today’s decline, Evergrande has about a $4 billion market capitalization and $90 billion in debt on its balance sheet, but $300 billion including unpaid bills. Fears of default are hitting markets everywhere. European stock markets are down about 2%. S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are down 1.3% and 1.6%, respectively.

Evergrande debt isn’t enough to derail the global economy on its own. The problem is if Evergrande problems lead to problems for lenders to Evergrande and then for other companies that need to borrow money from banks and the bond markets. That’s the nature of credit contagion.
And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future
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erowind
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Hot Take given the media frenzy right now. And to give credit where credit is due, this is mostly Michael Roberts speaking not Erowind. It is highly unlikely that China will face a financial crisis like America and the Eurozone did a decade ago.

China directly controls the People's Bank of China which can issue whatever financial directive is needed to stave off financial crises. Unlike western countries China's government owns the four largest banks in China and can issue similar directives and command control over their investment decisions and policy. China's government debt is low by international standards and its corporate and household debt are also modest in comparison. China's capitalist sector is starting to face a profitability crises but the Chinese economy is still productive due to a still massive public sector compared to other countries. Over 60% of China's is economy publicly owned and administered by the central government.

All of this means that the Chinese government can wield substantially more executive control over its financial sector compared to countries like America. China can control the majority of its economy directly through state ownership and the private sector due to the ability to create and enforce policy effectively as well as indirectly influence the private sector through monopolistic control of China's public sector. There are considerably more tools in China's toolbox to deal with a speculative property bubble than there are/were for America in a similar situation.

(Don't take any of what I say for apologism, their social policies are still fascist hellstate shit.)

https://thenextrecession.wordpress.com/ ... vergrande/
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