From Holden:
Kos is extremely intelligent and talented, but he sucks at finding Bush Booms. Today he informs us that planned layoffs reached an eight-month high in September:
U.S. planned job cuts soared to an eight-month high in September while new hiring rose only slightly, a report said on Tuesday.
Employment consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. said employers announced 107,863 layoffs in September, 41 percent more than in September 2003 and 45 percent more than in August of this year, when 74,150 were laid off.
The September figure was the largest since January 2004, when employers laid off 117,556 workers.
The September figure brings third-quarter job cuts to 251,585, 19.9 percent more than the 209,895 registered in the previous quarter and 4 percent more than the 241,548 for the third quarter of 2003.
Let’s not forget what’s coming up on the same day as the next debate.
One Friday, the government will report on the U.S. employment situation in September. It will be the last official report before the presidential elections. Economists polled by Reuters forecast a 148,000 rise in non-farm payrolls for September compared with a 144,000 rise in August.
Wait a minute. Reuters better update their poll, because those economists are now predicting 4,000 fewer jobs in September than we had in August.
Last month, the Labor Department reported the country added 144,000 jobs in August, a rate considered lackluster for a recovering economy but an improvement over preceding months.
Many economists are predicting a number closer to 140,000 for September, but admit that trying to factor in the hurricanes’ effect makes their forecasts more of a guess than usual.