Tag Archives: Jobs

Just less than 19,000 tracked mortgage jobs were cut in April, May, and June, according to Mortgage Daily, with more than 20,000 job losses offsetting about 1,600 gains. The net loss is a major jump from the 8,100 reported losses in the first quarter and the nearly 3,000 reported a year ago. All of the reported cuts in the second quarter happened at banks, with credit unions and other non-banks adding jobs.

The Conference Board released Monday its Employment Trends Index (ETI) for August, reporting a slight increase from July to a reading of 121.29. "The strong increase in the Employment Trends Index in recent months signals robust job growth through the fall," said Gad Levanon, director of macroeconomic research at the Conference Board, adding that August's lower-than-expected employment numbers "seem to be a one-month deviation from a stronger trend."

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported an increase of 142,000 in U.S. payrolls last month, well short of the 230,000 predicted by economists. August's sudden slowdown snaps a six-month streak in which payroll growth came in at 200,000 or higher.

While the state of Alabama has been slow to recover economically since the recession officially ended five years ago, the housing market's recovery in the state has struggled along with the rest of the nation so far this year, according to a commentary from Wells Fargo's Economics Group.

Colorado's unemployment rate dropped to 5.3 percent in July, and the state's real gross domestic product (GDP) grew at a rate of two points faster than the national average in 2013, according to a recent report from Wells Fargo's Economics Group. Where housing recovery is concerned, however, Colorado's struggles mirror those of the country as a whole, according to Wells Fargo.

Freddie Mac's Multi-Indicator Market Index (MiMi) rose 0.04 percent from May to June, ending the year's first half at a reading of 73. "As we see the economy slowly normalizing we're starting to see its effects in the housing market as well, albeit very slowly," said Freddie Mac Chief Economist Frank Nothaft. "The good news is the big housing markets, of which some were also the hardest hit, continue to improve."

The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index climbed 2.1 points to 92.4 in the group's August reading, marking the highest level of confidence since October 2007. August's increase was driven by an increase in Conference Board's measure of current economic sentiment, which grew to 94.6 from 87.9 in July. Most of that was spurred by more promising reports over the spring and summer as business and labor market indicators improved.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen called for moderation in monetary policy in a major speech on Friday as the economy continued to show signs of a slow but steady recovery. Speaking from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the central banker hailed a falling unemployment rate and improving payroll figures but held back from calling it significant enough process to notch up still-low interest rates.

Leading economic indicators in the United States experienced a sharp increase in July, signaling what analysts hope will be a stronger second half of 2014. The Conference Board's Leading Economic Index (LEI) rose 0.9 percent last month to 103.3, building on improvements of 0.6 percent in both May and June.

After half a year of failed predictions and slow starts, the U.S. economy actually appears to be closing in on normal, at least according to Freddie Mac. Freddie's latest Economic and Housing Market Outlook shows that the agency expects to see the U.S. housing market driven once again by fundamentals—jobs, household formations, and affordability—rather than economic upheaval.