, Columnist
Strong Jobs Report Provides a Reason to End the Paranoia
A rising unemployment rate was the main cause for concern about the US economy. Now, it’s falling again.
A good labor market report.
Photographer: Angus Mordant/Bloomberg
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It may soon be time to shed our paranoia about the US labor market and concede that the economy is looking fabulous.
By one estimate, gross domestic product may have posted a 2.5% annualized gain in the third quarter. Inflation is falling back to target. And a slew of data on household savings and borrowing suggest that consumers still have considerable firepower. The job market had been the only real fly in the ointment, with payrolls growth slowing and the unemployment rate moving meaningfully higher. Until now.