ShareEach day the Research staff takes a look at recently released economic indicators, addressing what these indicators mean for REALTORS® and their clients. Today’s update discusses jobless claims and the GDP.
- Initial jobless claims did not budge much last week. New claims remained just above 400,000, at 402,000, falling 2,000 claims from the week before. Economists generally suggest that claims below 400,000 indicate expansion of the workforce.
- The four-week average stands at 405,500, 10,000 lower than the same time last month. This decrease hints at some improvement in the October employment report.
- Assuming new jobless claims remain steady, NAR expects about 1.5 million net new jobs in the next 12 months. Continuing claims fell a significant 96,000 to 3.645 million, while the four-week average fell 50,000 to 3.701 million. The decrease in continuing claims is a combination of new hiring and benefit expiration.
- A separate report on the state of the U.S. economy showed strengthening of economic growth in the third quarter, the strongest so far in 2011.
- GDP grew to a 2.5 percent annualized increase in the third quarter, after a weaker 1.3 percent in the second and 0.4 percent in the first quarter.
- Year-over-year, GDP is up 1.6 percent. Growth was partially offset by decreases in private inventory investment and state and local government spending, while imports increased some as well.
- Real residential fixed investment slowed some from the quarter before, increasing 2.4 percent, after a 4.2 percent increase last quarter. The possibility of another recession in the next 2 years has fallen close to zero.