9 May 2016
US: Employment growth isn’t the problem – SocGen
Kit Juckes, Research Analyst at Societe Generale, suggests that Friday’s US payroll data were a little soft but well within any reasonable person’s confidence interval.
Key Quotes
“The long-term average monthly increase dipped from 206k to 205k. The unemployment rate stayed at 5%, but wage growth edged up to 2.5% y/y. But the data, overall, confirm the steady growth of job creation.
That’s not the US economy’s problem. The economy’s problems are productivity (or lack thereof) and the weakness of capital spending. You can argue that super-low rates have hindered investment while promoting debt-financed share buy-backs and tax-inspired corporate management. Whatever the cause, the situation isn’t changing.”
Key Quotes
“The long-term average monthly increase dipped from 206k to 205k. The unemployment rate stayed at 5%, but wage growth edged up to 2.5% y/y. But the data, overall, confirm the steady growth of job creation.
That’s not the US economy’s problem. The economy’s problems are productivity (or lack thereof) and the weakness of capital spending. You can argue that super-low rates have hindered investment while promoting debt-financed share buy-backs and tax-inspired corporate management. Whatever the cause, the situation isn’t changing.”