The weekly figures for new unemployment claims came out this morning and they were an improvement over the recent past. The total of new claims was 390,000 and the four week moving average is now 400,000. These are not good numbers, but they are less bad than has been the case for the last six months. It would be nice to think that the economy is finally getting back to the point where it will be creating adequate jobs to keep up with population growth and maybe even reduce unemployment a bit. Today's figures show a tentative move in that direction. Nevertheless, the economy remains so weak that it is captive to outside events. If problems with Italy's finances blow up, the American economy will be injured. The damage may not be a bad as the damage in the Euro Zone, but it can still be severe. Some new shock that drives the price of oil up will also push the economy back in the wrong direction. The big problem is that there is no coordinated effort to push America in the right direction. In Washington, the president is spending his time positioning himself for re-election rather than trying to actually accomplish anything to help grow the eeconomy. Everything is just too uncertain.
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