Econintersect: The Conference Board Employment Trends Index (ETI) increased slightly in November, but is up 6.4% from a year ago. Says Gad Levanon, Associate Director of Macroeconomic Research at The Conference Board:
“The Employment Trends Index posted a large increase for the second straight month, with all of its components showing gains over these two months. The better than expected growth in economic activity in recent months is likely to lead to some acceleration in job growth in the beginning of 2012. However, this improvement may be short lived, in particular as the U.S. economy slows down once again in the coming quarters.”
This month’s strength in the ETI was driven by positive contributions from seven out of the eight components. The eight components are:
- Percentage of Respondents Who Say They Find “Jobs Hard to Get” (The Conference Board
Consumer Confidence Survey®) - Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance (U.S. Department of Labor)
- Percentage of Firms With Positions Not Able to Fill Right Now (© National Federation of
Independent Business Research Foundation) - Number of Employees Hired by the Temporary-Help Industry (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
- Part-Time Workers for Economic Reasons (BLS)
- Job Openings (BLS)
- Industrial Production (Federal Reserve Board)
- Real Manufacturing and Trade Sales (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis)
The improving indicators include The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Survey® “Jobs Hard to Get,” Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance, Percentage of Firms With Positions Not Able to Fill Right Now, Number of Employees Hired by the Temporary-Help Industry, Part-Time Workers for Economic Reasons, Job Openings, and Real Manufacturing and Trade Sales.
Econintersect’s jobs index is forecasting a weak jobs market for the rest of the year (analysis here).
Source: The Conference Board
