Commentary 8379
December, 2011 Data:
The forecast for the US unemployment rate is in the table at the top of this
page. Forecast-Chart.com is forecasting that US unemployment rates will be
roughly 8.20% over the next year. The table shows a HDTFA of 1.51% which
suggests that US inflation for the 12 months ending January, 2013 could easily
fall between 9.71% and 6.69%. Links to Forecasts for many other economic
indicators may be found on the left side of this page.
Annual Unemployment Rates
Last Month 8.3%
Last Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.0%
Last 5 Years 7.6%
Last 10 Years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5%
Last 20 Years 6.0%
Historical Unemployment Rate: Highs & Lows
High (Last 12 Months) 9.8% (January, 2011)
Low (Last 12 Months) 8.2% (November, 2011)
High (Since January, 1948) 10.8% (November, 1982)
Low (Since January, 1948) 2.5% (May, 1953)
The annual US unemployment rate in December, 2011 was 8.30%. That's
0.10% percent higher than the November, 2011 unemployment rate of 8.20%. It
is 0.80% percent lower than the December, 2010 unemployment rate of 9.10%.
The rise in unemployment rates from November to December indicates that the
short term unemployment rate trend has been up. If that trend continues, we
should see an unemployment rate in January, 2012 that is close to 8.40%.
The US unemployment rate one year ago was 9.10%. The average rate over
the last year was 8.95%. The average rate over the last 10 years was 6.52%.
Higher rates over the last 12 months compared to the average rates over the
last 10 years serve as an indicator that the long term trend in the US
unemployment rate is up. Unemployment rate expectations should be adjusted
accordingly.
Forecast-Chart.com's historical research covers US unemployment rate data
back to January, 1948. The average annual unemployment rate during that
period of history was 5.77%. The highest rate was 10.80%. The lowest rate was
2.50%. The high was attained in November of 1982. The low was achieved in
May of 1953. Recent rates experienced in December of 2011 are high relative
to the historical 5.77% average.
This page provides a five year chart and a twelve month forecast for US
unemployment rates. For links to more information on US unemployment rates,
look at the links under the five year chart (above). One link opens a ten year
chart. Another opens a sixty year graph of the US unemployment rate.
UNEMPLOYMENT RATES BY AGE AND SEX
(Not Seasonally Adjusted)
Unemployment Rates: Males 20 Years & Over
2011-01 10.2%
2011-02 10.0%
2011-03 9.6%
2011-04 8.7%
2011-05 8.6%
2011-06 8.7%
2011-07 8.5%
2011-08 8.3%
2011-09 8.1%
2011-10 8.1%
2011-11 7.8%
2011-12 8.2%
Unemployment Rates: Females 20 Years & Over
2011-01 8.1%
2011-02 7.9%
2011-03 7.6%
2011-04 7.4%
2011-05 7.7%
2011-06 8.2%
2011-07 8.6%
2011-08 8.6%
2011-09 8.3%
2011-10 7.8%
2011-11 7.5%
2011-12 7.4%
Unemployment Rates: Teenagers (16-19)
2011-01 26.3%
2011-02 24.1%
2011-03 26.3%
2011-04 23.0%
2011-05 24.0%
2011-06 27.6%
2011-07 25.6%
2011-08 24.7%
2011-09 24.5%
2011-10 23.9%
2011-11 23.4%
2011-12 21.5%
Unemployment Rates: Total U. S.
2011-01 9.8%
2011-02 9.5%
2011-03 9.2%
2011-04 8.7%
2011-05 8.7%
2011-06 9.3%
2011-07 9.3%
2011-08 9.1%
2011-09 8.8%
2011-10 8.5%
2011-11 8.2%
2011-12 8.3%
UNEMPLOYMENT RATES BY STATE
December, 2011, Seasonally Adjusted
3.3% North Dakota
4.1% Nebraska
4.2% South Dakota
5.1% New Hampshire
5.1% Vermont
5.6% Iowa
5.7% Minnesota
5.8% Wyoming
6.0% Utah
6.1% Oklahoma
6.2% Virginia
6.3% Kansas
6.6% Hawaii
6.6% New Mexico
6.7% Maryland
6.8% Louisiana
6.8% Massachusetts
6.8% Montana
7.0% Maine
7.1% Wisconsin
7.3% Alaska
7.4% Delaware
7.6% Pennsylvania
7.7% Arkansas
7.8% Texas
7.9% Colorado
7.9% West Virginia
8.0% Missouri
8.0% New York
8.1% Alabama
8.1% Ohio
8.2% Connecticut
8.4% Idaho
8.5% Washington
8.7% Arizona
8.7% Tennessee
8.9% Oregon
9.0% Indiana
9.0% New Jersey
9.1% Kentucky
9.3% Michigan
9.5% South Carolina
9.7% Georgia
9.8% Illinois
9.9% Florida
9.9% North Carolina
10.4% District Of Columbia
10.4% Mississippi
10.8% Rhode Island
11.1% California
12.6% Nevada
UNEMPLOYMENT RATES: ALPHABETICAL ORDER
December, 2011, Seasonally Adjusted
8.1% Alabama Unemployment Rate
7.3% Alaska Unemployment Rate
8.7% Arizona Unemployment Rate
7.7% Arkansas Unemployment Rate
11.1% California Unemployment Rate
7.9% Colorado Unemployment Rate
8.2% Connecticut Unemployment Rate
7.4% Delaware Unemployment Rate
10.4% District Of Columbia Unemployment Rate
9.9% Florida Unemployment Rate
9.7% Georgia Unemployment Rate
6.6% Hawaii Unemployment Rate
8.4% Idaho Unemployment Rate
9.8% Illinois Unemployment Rate
9.0% Indiana Unemployment Rate
5.6% Iowa Unemployment Rate
6.3% Kansas Unemployment Rate
9.1% Kentucky Unemployment Rate
6.8% Louisiana Unemployment Rate
7.0% Maine Unemployment Rate
6.7% Maryland Unemployment Rate
6.8% Massachusetts Unemployment Rate
9.3% Michigan Unemployment Rate
5.7% Minnesota Unemployment Rate
10.4% Mississippi Unemployment Rate
8.0% Missouri Unemployment Rate
6.8% Montana Unemployment Rate
4.1% Nebraska Unemployment Rate
12.6% Nevada Unemployment Rate
5.1% New Hampshire Unemployment Rate
9.0% New Jersey Unemployment Rate
6.6% New Mexico Unemployment Rate
8.0% New York Unemployment Rate
9.9% North Carolina Unemployment Rate
3.3% North Dakota Unemployment Rate
8.1% Ohio Unemployment Rate
6.1% Oklahoma Unemployment Rate
8.9% Oregon Unemployment Rate
7.6% Pennsylvania Unemployment Rate
10.8% Rhode Island Unemployment Rate
9.5% South Carolina Unemployment Rate
4.2% South Dakota Unemployment Rate
8.7% Tennessee Unemployment Rate
7.8% Texas Unemployment Rate
6.0% Utah Unemployment Rate
5.1% Vermont Unemployment Rate
6.2% Virginia Unemployment Rate
8.5% Washington Unemployment Rate
7.9% West Virginia Unemployment Rate
7.1% Wisconsin Unemployment Rate
5.8% Wyoming Unemployment Rate
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Monthly US National Unemployment rate is plotted in gray. The forecast for the target month is shown
in green. Other links related to this economic indicator are below.
US National Unemployment rate - 5 Year History
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US National Unemployment rate Forecast
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Forecast for US National Unemployment rate for the target month indicated. Measurement is in Percent (not seasonally adjusted).
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Updated Tuesday, January 31, 2012.
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US Unemployment Rate Forecast
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1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967
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3.8 6.1 5.2 3.3 3.0 2.9 5.6 4.4 4.1 4.3 6.8 5.5 5.5 6.7 5.6 5.6 5.2 4.5 3.8 3.8
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1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
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3.6 3.5 5.0 6.0 5.6 4.9 5.6 8.5 7.7 7.1 6.1 5.9 7.2 7.6 9.7 9.6 7.5 7.2 7.0 6.2
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1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
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5.5 5.3 5.6 6.9 7.5 6.9 6.1 5.6 5.4 4.9 4.5 4.2 4.0 4.7 5.8 6.0 5.5 5.1 4.6 4.6
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Average US Unemployment Rate is shown in this table: 1948 to present
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Current Unemployment Rate News:
A note of encouragement from the Editor:
After my son turned sixteen, I told him it was time to get a job. It was summer
and jobs were hard to find. The unemployment rate was about 6% at the time.
But the unemployment rate for teenagers was 19.5%! The summer is the
hardest time of the year for a teenager to find a job. The kids who held the jobs
during the school year want more hours, since school is out and they have
more time on their hands. There is also an increase in applications from the
students who didn't work during the school year but want a summer job. On a
Monday, I told my 16 year old to apply for ten jobs every day until he got
one. He said he couldn't come up with ten places to apply.
He applied for ten jobs per day for five days. He received a job on
application number forty-five, the following Friday. He was a busboy at a
pizza parlor that summer.
My son graduated from college in May of 2009. The economy was in turmoil.
The unemployment rate was nearly 10%. The seniors in his class were not
finding jobs. This is what I told him:
“I lived through times like these during the Oil & Gas and Real Estate
Depression that occurred in Texas during the 1980’s. That’s when oil prices fell
to $9 per barrel! The Texas unemployment rate rose to 9.3%. Almost every
major Texas bank was unable to continue and was taken over by an out of state
bank. Most of the companies in my industry did not survive.” I said…
“Expect to call one thousand companies to find a job!”
He contacted about three companies per day. Most were not hiring. Many
laughed when he asked if they were hiring. He applied to those which were
accepting applications. He lived like a Gypsy on a shoestring, expected success
and never asked me for a penny. It took two hundred phone calls to find a
job, in his field, with a fast growing company that has a wonderful corporate
environment. The job was three hundred miles from his preferred location, but
he loves his job! The search took two months.
What’s the lesson? Many become discouraged after a series of failed attempts
and stop trying. Never give up! Expect it to be hard. Expect success.
If you need free help with discouragement, click here.
J. C. Phillips
Editor of ForecastChart.com
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