While almost everyone seems to want to announce a knockout for the U.S. economy, it remains resilient, although weak, as the latest job and unemployment numbers came out.
Economists had forecast a significant 80,000 layoffs in April, and numbers were surprisingly far lower, with only 20,000 jobs being shed.
The other good news was unemployment fell from 5.1 percent to 5 percent in March; another nice surprise.
We may not be out of the woods yet, as far as the condition of the economy, but a slowing, but growing economy, along with numbers that continually attest to this being more of a slowdown than a recession, make it look like the economy could start to strengthen in the second half.
As Jim Paulsen, chief investment officer for Wells Capital Management in Minneapolis said, "What you get a sense of is that people have been coming into this in recent months with the idea that this was a horrendous recessionary calamity, and I think what we're coming to find out is that this looks more like a mid-cycle slowdown."
Some of the stronger sectors have been educations, professional service health-care and accomodations.
The weak U.S. dollar has also kept exports strong, which has helped the manufacturing industry hold more jobs than usual.
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Sometimes the emotional perception that your job is in danger is more troubling than any fact-based information you receive. If you're one of the 'projected 80,000', you're going to still go through the stress and worry, even if you don't wind up losing your job.
The best plan, if you're worried, is to always be prepared for the next thing. I found Susan Friedmann's Riches in Niches to be a good book to help get one prepared for being downsized: she talks about taking charge of your own destiny so you're not subject in the same way to all the economic news and attendant stress!
Posted by: Cindy | May 22, 2008 7:20 AM | Permalink to Comment