Unemployment claims: January 16 2010

[c1ue]

http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/eta/ui/current.htm

Another week, another data point showing little improvement even against the depths of the financial meltdown: net unemployment still above 1 year ago. EUC grew week on week by over 600K.

	Advance				Prior1
WEEK ENDING	Jan. 16	Jan. 9	Change	Jan. 2	Year

---

Initial Claims (SA)	482,000	446,000	+36,000	433,000	575,000
Initial Claims (NSA)	650,728	804,922	-154,194	645,446	763,987
4-Wk Moving Average (SA)	448,250	441,250	+7,000	449,750	526,500

	Advance				Prior1
WEEK ENDING	Jan. 9	Jan. 2	Change	Dec. 26	Year

---

Ins. Unemployment (SA)	4,599,000	4,617,000	-18,000	4,807,000	4,576,000
Ins. Unemployment (NSA)	5,716,608	6,016,445	-299,837	5,484,997	5,651,117
4-Wk Moving Average (SA)	4,750,500	4,860,250	-109,750	5,006,500	4,515,500

WEEK ENDING

Jan. 2

Dec. 26

Change

Year

---

Federal Employees	27,768	25,912	+1,856	21,334
Newly Discharged Veterans	36,855	36,017	+838	27,040
Railroad Retirement Board	11,000	11,000	0	6,000
Extended Benefits	262,881	302,498	-39,617	3,103
EUC 20083	5,654,544	5,002,180	+652,364	2,094,313

[Rajiv]

Re: Unemployment claims: January 16 2010

Unemployment Insurance Tracker

[c1ue]

Re: Unemployment claims: January 16 2010

Nice article.

I wonder what insolvent means? No UE payments in those states? (AZ, CO, etc)

[Rajiv]

Re: Unemployment claims: January 16 2010

In Trouble: The state's unemployment fund will likely be depleted in six months or less.

They will have to begin to borrow from the Federal Government just as the dark red states have -- they have already progressed beyond insolvency.

[c1ue]

Re: Unemployment claims: January 16 2010

Rajiv,

I understand that - but what I wonder about is whether these states might have specific structures preventing them from going further into debt.

After all, what use is a requirement for a balanced budget if any and all borrowing can be done to 'make up' for shortfalls?

[Rajiv]

Re: Unemployment claims: January 16 2010

Sorry I misunderstood -- I will have to do a bit more digging to answer that one!

[Quincy K]

Re: Unemployment claims: January 16 2010

Rajiv,

I understand that - but what I wonder about is whether these states might have specific structures preventing them from going further into debt.

After all, what use is a requirement for a balanced budget if any and all borrowing can be done to 'make up' for shortfalls?

Budget? What are you talking about?

We have a printing press.

They are going to keep extending UE benefits along with QE2, 3, 4, etc.

If they stop extending the benefits...hello Rodney King.

[thriftyandboringinohio]

Re: Unemployment claims: January 16 2010

Unemployment Insurance Tracker

I'm surprised to see West Virgina in the clear.

[Rajiv]

Re: Unemployment claims: January 16 2010

If you click on W Va you will get more details. In part this is what it said

We project that West Virginia's fund will remain solvent, but the state is taking no chances, increasing the average tax on businesses from $216 to $348 per employee and freezing increases in benefits for the foreseeable future.

[WDCRob]

Re: Unemployment claims: January 16 2010

West Virginia is actually middle of the pack on unemployment right now (natural resource heavy state helps). It also has a history of truly terrible unemployment (I believe the peak unemployment rate there was 18% in the early 80s - the highest % any US state has experienced since the Depression IIRC). As a result I believe the UE taxes there are fairly high.