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Equity futures are moderately higher ahead of a fairly light week. Dow futures are trading 18 points higher at 10,563 and S&P 500 futures are up a 2 points to 1,138. ...

if productivity remains at these high levels and demand (output) does not increase , businesses will have less incentive to hire new labor. Given the uncertain economic outlook, we should expect to continue to see employers offering temporary job opportunities as seasonal influences warrant. From a positive perspective, the upward revision to unit labor costs and still extremely efficient read on productivity, while a function of less output, does support the notion that the pace of layoffs will continue to slow. Furthermore, a more productive work force and still falling unit labor costs implies greater corporate profitablity. Perhaps the surge in productivity will lead to larger dividend payments to shareholders. increased business investment spending, or just better pay for workers....either way, consumer demand growth is a necessity if the overall economy is to stabilize and maintain a consistent growth rate. Productivity is helping that happen. If you are an unemployed American looking for work...re-tool and re-educate yourself. ...

This data set tracks new filings for unemployment insurance benefits and the number of Americans who continue to receive state unemployment benefits (called continuing claims or insured unemployment). The fact that this data is released on a weekly basis makes it very appealing to traders and economists as it provides a week over week view into the health of the domestic labor market. Trader's and economists are looking for hints into questions like: Are jobs being created? Are jobs being lost? Does the trend indicate more job losses ahead? Does the trend indicate firms are expanding and hiring more in the process?...

Stocks opened higher and continued their climb in the first hour of trading, as retail sales came in slightly better than expected and a weekly labor report said claims for unemployment benefits were moderating. As of 10:30, the S&P 500 was up 0.90% to 947, the Dow was up 0.91% to 8819, and the Nasdaq was up 0.88% to 1869. The 10-year bond continues to moderate; the yield is down two tenths to 3.93%, after hitting 4.00% yesterday for the first time in a year. The U.S. Census Bureau said Retail...

One day ahead of the all-important Nonfarm Payrolls report for May, the focus is on speeches from Federal Reserve officials, overseas policy, and Treasury auctions. The weekly Jobless Claims report for the final week of May is expected to show 620,000 new filings for unemployment benefits. It’s safe to say an outlier figure will be considered a blip due to the four-day week from Memorial Day. Continuing Claims have have been setting record highs one week after the next and this report is unlikely...

It's another busy day Wednesday ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, with the release of U.S. personal income , the PCE Core Deflator , new home sales , durable goods and weekly jobless claims . U.S. durable goods are expected to fall 3.0% in October...

Initial claims for unemployment benefits in the United States rose above the consensus expectation to 478k in the week ending Oct. 18, up from the previous week's upwardly revised 463k level, the Department of Labor reported on Thursday. Continuing...

Economists say the worrying trend of jobless claims adds further evidence that payrolls will continue to decline for many months. The weekly report showed continuing claims reached a cyclical high, while initial claims fell back from a seven-year peak...