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The EMC Index, which tracks how people think and feel about their jobs, fell for the third straight month in December.

December 17, 2024

Employee sentiment fell in December

Employee sentiment fell by seven points in December, the third straight decline, but manufacturing remained a standout.
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October 7, 2024

Hiring in an age of uncertainty

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

There were a few data signals going into Friday’s blockbuster jobs report that many market watchers and economists missed. Layoffs, as measured by a rolling four-week average of initial jobless claims, hit their lowest level in more than a year and a half. August showed an uptick in job openings, a hint that companies were about to ramp up hiring. And September’s ADP National Employment Report suggested that a rebound in private-sector hiring was under way.
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September 30, 2024

Main Street Macro: What could go wrong?

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

Last week’s economic data delivered a lot of good news. The Bureau of Economic Analysis confirmed that the economy grew at a solid 3 percent pace in the second quarter. Initial jobless claims, a measure of layoffs, fell to 218,000, the lowest level since May.
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September 23, 2024

Main Street Macro: What’s debt got to do with it?

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

The Federal Reserve’s move to cut its benchmark interest rate by half a percentage point won’t likely be felt immediately by its primary targets, employers, and households. Yes, the Fed has a mandate to promote full employment and price stability, but in practice it takes a long time for rate cuts to translate into more hiring and spending on Main Street.
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September 16, 2024

Main Street Macro: There’s still no foregone conclusion on inflation. Here’s why

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

It would be easy to ignore the economic news this week and pay attention only to Wednesday’s Federal Reserve vote on interest rates. I caution you: Don’t.

Even with a Fed meeting on the calendar, there will be much more important data news to watch. That’s because we still don’t know with certainty the future path ...

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September 9, 2024

Main Street Macro: The landing: It’s not how, it’s where

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

For the last two years, economists and market strategists have been intensely engaged in a debate over this question: Is the U.S. economy headed for a hard or soft landing? The how is one thing, but much less attention has been paid to where the economy will land. But after a week of weaker-than-expected job data, the economy’s destination is coming into focus.
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August 27, 2024

Gen Z prefers blue-collar jobs. Or does it? 

by Sam AdiezeBen Hanowell

College enrollment data suggests that Gen Z is moving toward the skilled trades. We took a look at the payroll data.
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July 1, 2024

Main Street Macro: Three job questions for the next six months

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

Over the past six months, the job market has proven to be the most consistently upbeat indicator of the U.S. economy. Hiring didn't surge like the U.S. deficit, which the Congressional Budget Office projects will increase by more than $400 billion to $1.9 trillion this year, the third-largest deficit on record, behind 2020 and 2021, when pandemic relief spending pushed it to a record high.
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June 24, 2024

Main Street Macro: People are buying less stuff. That might matter for inflation.

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

Over the last four years, Main Street’s elevated consumption of durable goods has had both plusses and minuses for the economy. On the plus side, consumer spending on items such as electronics, refrigerators, and new cars helped pull the U.S. economy from the depths of the pandemic downturn into three years of robust growth.
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