Jobless Claims Lowest Since 1970 New claims for US unemployment benefits hovered near 57-year lows last week, suggesting the labor market regained momentum after struggling through much of the summer and is so far weathering headwinds from the Middle East conflict. The unemployment rate remained steady at 4.1%. That said, worker shortages and retirements have […]
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ByTheNumber$ – September 10th, 2026
Strong Jobs Number Last Friday, you probably saw the news that the August Jobs Report was surprisingly strong. Estimates were for an increase of ~56,000. The report came in with 162,000 new jobs, the highest since March. Both June and July numbers were revised upward by a combined 55,000. These reports have raised the odds […]
Read MoreByTheNumber$ – July 10th, 2026
Resilient Labor Markets For the week ended June 27, initial jobless claims decreased by 1,000 to 215,000, below expectations of 221,000. The unemployment rate also improved, declining from 4.3% to 4.2%. Average hourly wages, a good barometer for consumer spending, grew by 3.5% year-over-year, matching expectations. Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics Business Investment Picking […]
Read MoreByTheNumber$ – June 6th, 2026
Strong May Jobs Report Last Friday, the May jobs report showed that total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 172,000 in May, versus an estimated gain of 85,000. The unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.3 percent. Job gains occurred in leisure and hospitality, local government, and health care. The strong report, combined with solid gains in […]
Read MoreByTheNumber$ – May 8th, 2026
Earnings Reports Support Positive Forecasts Goldman Sachs put out some market views this week that express continued upside to US and global markets over the next 12 months. They forecast a 5.4% rise for the S&P 500, a 2.3% rise for the European STOXX index, and an 8.2% rise for the MSCI Emerging Markets index. […]
Read MoreByTheNumber$ – February 12th, 2026
Housing Affordability The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta published their updated housing affordability monitor this week. The “Affordability Gap”, defined as the gap between actual median household income and qualified income, is currently 40%, well above the 30% gap normally required to qualify for a standard home loan. The gap began to widen rapidly beginning […]
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