South By North Strategies, Ltd.

Around The Dial – May 13

Economic policy reports, blog postings, and media stories of interest:

• Calculated Risk summarizes the latest trade data.
• Brad DeLong asks where the outrage about unemployment is; Free Exchange answers.
• James Galbraith says the danger posed by the deficit “is zero.”
• James Surowiecki wonders if finance is “too clever by half.”

NC Unemployment Claims: Week of 4/24

For the benefit week ending on April 24th, 12,140 North Carolinians filed initial claims for state unemployment insurance benefits, and 173,940 individuals applied for state-funded continuing benefits. Compared to the prior week, there were more initial and fewer continuing claims. These figures come from data released today by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Averaging new and continuing claims over a four-week period — a process that helps adjust for seasonal fluctuations and better illustrates trends — shows that an average of 13,417 initial claims were filed over the last four weeks, along with an average of 182,246 claims. Compared to the previous four-week period, both initial and continuing claims were lower.

One year ago, the four-week average for initial claims stood at 23,959 and the four-week average of continuing claims equaled 222,675.

The graph (right) shows the changes in unemployment insurance claims (as a share of covered employment) in North Carolina since the recession’s start in December 2007.

Both new and continuing claims appear to have peaked for this business cycle, and the four-week average of new claims has fallen to a level last seen in August 2008. Yet continuing claims remain at an elevated level, which suggests that unemployed individuals are finding it extremely difficult to find new positions.

A Changing Workforce

A research brief from the Economic Policy Institute notes that women now hold close to half of all jobs in the United States, up from 40 percent in 1978.

Around The Dial – May 12

Economic policy reports, blog postings, and media stories of interest:

• Dean Baker says that “banks failing to lend” isn’t the problem.
• Free Exchange looks at income trends in “ideopolises” like Raleigh-Durham.
• The American Prospect profiles the new president of the SEIU.

Service Activity in The South Atlantic: April

From the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond’s latest survey of service-sector activity in the South Atlantic (District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia):

Fifth District service sector activity improved in April, according to the latest survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Growth in retail sales picked up while retail inventories continued to decline. Although big-ticket sales slumped, shopper traffic rose this month. Revenue growth also returned at non-retail services firms. Price change in the broad service sector ticked up slightly.
…
In service sector labor markets, non-retail firms were hiring again while retail job cuts continued. Average wages grew moderately across the sector.