The latest jobless figures seem like more of the same: Last week the number of new people filing for unemployment dropped to 457,000, down 5,00 from the previous week, which is another step in the right direction although it's still much too high. Sounds like most of the jobless reports we get, doesn't it?
At the same time, the previous week's number of new jobless claims was revised downward as well, so there was a little bit of extra good news. And all these little bits of good news have added up to the point that some people are speculating that in December, we might actually turn the corner and begin adding jobs to the payrolls. See, for instance, this piece from The Economist.
The November unemployment figures are due out today. The consensus seems to be that we will have lost 125,000 jobs or so in the month, although estimates range as low as 50,000. If the numbers today come in much lower than expected, we may be approaching that long-awaited turning point.
UPDATE: The November report on job losses came in much better than anyone predicted, with the economy losing only 11,000 jobs for the month. The job-loss figures for the previous two months were revised downward as well. We'll have more to say about this on Monday.
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