Retail sales fall unexpectedly; jobless claims up

[The Northerner]

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Retail sales unexpectedly fell in December, leaving 2009 with the biggest yearly drop on record and highlighting the formidable hurdles facing the economy as it struggles to recover from the deepest recession in seven decades.

In another disappointing economic report, the number of newly laid-off workers requesting unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week as jobs remain scarce.

Still, many economists, puzzled by the retail sales decline that follows reports from retailers of brighter holidays, cautioned that the December figures don't necessarily signal a big consumer pullback and could be a blip.

Taking November and December figures together provides a picture of modestly positive spending, they said, but the monthly drop underscores how tentative the economic recovery remains, given all the headwinds facing consumers.

Read more: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/New-jobless-claims-rise-more-apf-1551827594.html?x=0&.v=6

[DJ13]

1. Green Shoots!

And some economists are seriously trying to claim the recession is over?

[Tesha]

4. Unfortunately for those "green shoots", the corporations are still trying to "Round Up" our jobs.

No employment => No money => No spending.

Tesha

[Downwinder]

5. The green shoots are just Wall street weeds.

[Romulox]

2. Turns out that "Happy talk" is not an economic policy.

Why in hell is our government so miserly with aid to regular people, but opens the doors of Fort Knox wide open for the banksters? :wtf:

[bvar22]

3. What a Debbie Downer.

Look on the Bright Side!
There are NO failed Wall Street Bankers clogging up the Unemployment Lines!
:party:

[SpiralHawk]

9. "You rang?" - DD

[defendandprotect]

6. Think we'll see more major stores closing . . .

"America" .... what once was?

[lapfog_1]

7. Now for the double dip.

and this one could be deeper than the last year and half.

I, for the first time in my life, went to two food banks today. They only happen once a month. I got enough food to last maybe a week. Almost no protein items (some sliced ham, a jar of peanut butter, two juice sized boxes of milk), all the rest was bread and crackers, one bag of rice, another of beans, a few cans of soup. That's pretty much it. Oh, I got a bag of dried cherries and a small bottle of tartar sauce... WTF??? Whatever, glad to have it. I guess I'll try rice and dried cherries with some milk. I used to like that with raisins.

In the very tiny town of 1700 people, there were more than 100 people in the line, everyone gets a number pinned to their clothes to represent the number of people in their family (1,2,3, and 4+). Probably 200 to 300 people in this tiny town are being fed by the food bank, a great number more are on food stamps and other relief. And this is a retirement community where a goodly number are on social security.

There are no jobs here. None. Stores are closing right and left, but the WallMart 15 miles away is doing great. But no jobs there either.

This is the great depression with TeeVee and the internet.

[proudohioan]

12. I'm sorry to hear that......

Yeah, things really suck with this economy.

I agree with you about Great Depression with TV and Internet; true unemployment levels must be higher that stated. I can think of 5 people off the top of my head (myself included) who are jobless, and not eligible for UI. I would think that would make them off the radar(??).

Tartar sauce????

Hang in there.

t

[Bonhomme Richard]

8. Not unexpected to me. Has anyones income increased lately?

Do people that still have jobs feel secure? I don't think so.

[taught_me_patience]

10. No worry, bankers spending their bonuses will boost the economy

in Jan.

[Frosty cupcake]

11. Without a robust manufacturing sector, a nation is screwed.

Manufacturing creates wealth. You can start by extracting raw materials, then turn that into steel, which is worth more than the ore. You take the steel and process that into things, creating more wealth. Those parts get assembled and turned into products, which also sell for more than the original worth of the parts. Further, at all those stages, you use skilled labor (unions!) to produce the material. Wealth created for the manufacturer and good jobs for workers.

But a consumer society? Low wage, retail workers selling cheap imports to other low wage retail workers.

And the professional class in this country? They don't create wealth, either. $50 worth of tax advice is essentially traded for $50 worth of interior design service, or whatever. That doesn't create wealth, it's just a sophisticated barter system, involving credit and currency.

[xchrom]

13. Recommend

[Odin2005]

14. Is it a Depression yet?

[Anakin Skywalker]

15. "Unexpectedly"? LOL

Economists with prestigious degrees are such a joke! They don't live in the real world. F*ck them!

[drdtroit]

17. That was my thought indeed, in whose "reality" was this unexpected? n/t

[XemaSab]

16. Who would have ever thought

that there would be fewer people employed in retail in January than there were in December? :eyes:

[PSPS]

18. But, but, last month they said christmas sales were way up!!11!!!

[fasttense]

19. How could so many people be so wrong?

Last month we were told by corrupt corporations pretending to be news organizations that Christmas retail sales were way up. Don't worry our gubermint told us. We are all recovering from the near brink of Depression. Be happy, spend more, life is just so good. And now we hear that December retail sales had the Biggest Yearly Drop On Record.

How can they get it so wrong so often? Well the truth is they don't get it wrong, they merely lie. Happy talk is no substitute for clear plans and leadership.

There will be NO jobless recovery because lack of jobs is what is causing this 2nd Republicon Great Depression (along with 30 years of economic stupidity).

[crim son]

20. Unexpectedly?

Morans.