New Jobless Numbers Worse than Expected

The Washington Post's Ticker blog reports on new jobless claims:

New jobless claims last week jumped to 576,000, a figure higher than economists expected, the Labor Department reported moments ago.

The new jobless claims number was up 15,000 from the previous week's revised numbers. Economists expected a drop of about 11,000 last week.

The figure wiped out stock futures gains that had been promising a higher market opening today.

It also suggests more job losses to come this month. The official national unemployment rate stands at 9.4 percent, but most economists -- and the White House -- expect the figure to peak at more than 10 percent.

Analysts suggest that the economy needs to see fewer than 500,000 new jobless claims per week for several weeks in a row before an unemployment bottom can be called.

More data suggesting that the underlying economic situation is less sound than many believe. The economy didn't fall off the cliff, but it seems like we're still sliding down that mountain. Also, Nouriel Roubini wants us to stop asking when the recession will end.