by sslifer | Jan 8, 2026 | NumberNomics Notes, Productivity
January 8, 2026 Unit labor costs might be a term that is not familiar to you. Unit labor costs represent the increase in compensation adjusted for the gains in productivity. You might think that if labor costs are rising that would put upward pressure on...
by sslifer | Jan 8, 2026 | NumberNomics Notes, Productivity
January 8, 2026 The Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated that hourly compensation rose 2.9% in the third quarter after climbing 1.1% in the second quarter In the past year compensation has risen 3.2%. Growth in hourly compensation is a good thing, but that increase...
by sslifer | Jan 8, 2026 | Miscellaneous, NumberNomics Notes
January 8, 2026 The trade deficit for October $18.8 billion to $29.4 billion after narrowing by $7.5 billion in September. That is the smallest trade deficit June 2009. Exports rose 2.6% in October to $302.0 billion after having risen 3,6% in September. In the past...
by sslifer | Jan 8, 2026 | Employment, NumberNomics Notes
January 8, 2026 Initial unemployment claims rose 8 thousand to 208 thousand in the week ending January 3 after having fallen 15 thousand in the previous week. The Fed and most economists have been worried about a significant weakening in the labor market. While...
by sslifer | Jan 7, 2026 | NumberNomics Notes, Purchasing Managers Index
January 7, 2026 The Institute for Supply Management not only publishes an index of manufacturing activity each month, they publish two days later a survey of service sector firms. The business activity index climbed 1.5 points in December to 56.0 after having risen...
by sslifer | Jan 7, 2026 | Employment, NumberNomics Notes
January 7, 2026 The Labor Department reported that job openings fell 303 thousand in November after having fallen 209 thousand in October after jumping 431 thousand in September. It has been bouncing around in recent months but it is about where it was in the...
Follow Me