Wednesday, February 3, 2010

The "BLS" is all "BS"

Okay, let me get this straight; we may lose 824,000 jobs (or have that many less created) due to the Bureau of Labor Statistics ("BLS") not counting right.

http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2010/02/824000-will-disappear-on-february-5-bls.html

Now the low number of people losing their jobs this past month seems to be getting more attention, but in my book the revision to the BLS stats seems to be more significant. Now this loss adjustment is just through March of 2009, so I tend to think more are in the line.

I link a good (a very good post) that discusses the reason the BLS estimates are BS. It all boils down to this birth-death model thingy. Not humans, but businesses. Seems that the BLS somehow believed that during the worst recession since the Great Depression we were somehow creating new companies. Funny, right.

Well the new job adjustment, which is nearly a million people less employed, is only through March 2009. Some feel this "adjustment" is simply history, as in old news. Well, if the BLS had to eliminate close to a million jobs to correct their records through last March, what corrections are needed through the end of the year? Does this seriously not deserve more attention? And more importantly, please return to fundamentals. Housing is still sucking wind, mortgage defaults are still high and ARMs defaults should be climbing, unemployment is (after the LS contortions are revealed) still on the rise and significant. Short story - we are still sucking wind. Sorry, but I am not buying yet any other story.

Disclosures: None

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