When this number tanks, then I really go to DEFCON 1. But initial jobless claims were essentially unchanged at 301,000 in the week ending January 19, and the four-week average dropped from 328,750 to 314,750, the lowest since early October. So far, according to Action Economics, initial claims are averaging 307,000 in January, well below prior averages of 344,000 in December, 339,000 in November, 327,000 in October, 313,000 in September, and 325,000 in August. The current phase of megapessimism really began with the weak December jobs number, a preliminary figure that is so unreliable that the Labor Department might really want to consider delaying its release until more complete data can be gathered.
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Storeeach of 9:22PM December 13, 2009