I am not an economist--but I do occasionally pay attention to jobless numbers when they come out. Ed Morrissey at Hot Air posted an article today that attempts to explain the latest set of numbers and the spin the White House is trying to put on them.
The January unemployment figure is listed at 9 per cent. However, only 36,000 jobs were added to the job market.
Mr. Morrissey reports:
"Looking at the A-6 table, which compares numbers January 2010 to January 2011 (not seasonally adjusted), we can see that the unemployment rate for those without disabilities has dropped from 10.4% to 9.7%. The number of non-disabled adults outside the work force has grown substantially in that period, from 62.8 million to 64.7 million. That far outstrips population growth and indicates that people are still leaving the work force in large numbers. In the A-16 table for the same period (not seasonally adjusted), the number of people outside the workforce has grown from 83.9 million to 86.2 million, again showing a large increase.
"The topline rate number looks better, but it also looks increasingly irrelevant. The Department of Labor shows that the average monthly growth of jobs over the last 12 months has been 97,000, not enough to keep up with population growth. That's the key measure, and it's simply not getting any better, nor any more consistent."
Basically, you can make numbers say anthing you want them to say. I have no idea if the economy is getting better or not. What I do know is that I am paying more at the gas pump and more at the grocery store. That tells me that things are not headed in a direction I want them to go.
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