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May 27, 2012 12:01 PM GMT+0800 Job growth probably picked up in May after the weakest gain in sixmonths, and the U.S. unemployment rate held at a three-year low,signs of gradual improvement in the labor market, economists saidbefore reports this week. Payrolls climbed by 150,000 workers after a 115,000 gain in April,according to the median forecast of 68 economists surveyed byBloomberg News ahead of Labor Department figures due June 1.Manufacturing cooled and household purchases increased, other datamay show. Bigger job and wage gains will probably be needed to trigger aself-sustaining cycle of increases in hiring and consumer spendingthat will spur the recovery. At the same time, slowdowns in Europeand parts of Asia threaten to curb exports and manufacturing,representing a barrier to faster growth. We have a labor market that s improving, but not the kind of jobgrowth that would really propel the recovery to a stronger phase, said Julia Coronado, chief economist for North America at BNPParibas in New York. Barring a bad scenario in Europe, we wouldexpect some stronger numbers in the second half of the year. Private payrolls, which exclude government jobs, climbed 160,000 inMay after rising 130,000 last month, the weakest since August,economists forecast the Labor Department report will show. The projected gain in total payrolls would bring the monthlyaverage this year to 318,000, compared with 176,200 in the firstfive months of 2011. Unemployment Rate The jobless rate, derived from a separate survey of households,held at a three-year low of 8.1 percent in May, economists in theBloomberg survey predicted. Unemployment has exceeded 8 percentsince February 2009, the longest such stretch since monthly recordsbegan in 1948. Federal Reserve officials reduced forecasts for the jobless rate,to an average 7.8 percent to 8 percent in the fourth quartercompared with a January projection of 8.2 percent to 8.5 percent,according to central tendency estimates released April 25. The newforecasts are still above policy makers estimates for fullemployment, which range from 5.2 percent to 6 percent. Through April, the economy had recovered about 3.7 million of the8.8 million jobs lost as a result of the 18-month recession thatended in June 2009. With the economy and unemployment the top issues in this year spresidential race, presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney hascriticized President Barack Obama by saying White House policieshaven t brought about a fast enough recovery from the downturn.The former Massachusetts governor has said in speeches andinterviews that Obama is not up to the task of guiding theeconomy. Consumer Spending Even with the recent slowdown in the pace of job growth, Americansare spending. A Commerce Department report due June 1 will providedetails of how consumption fared at the beginning of this quarter.Purchases may have grown 0.3 percent in April, matching theprevious month s gain, according to the Bloomberg survey median.Incomes also rose 0.3 percent following a 0.4 percent increase,economists said. Sustained purchases are prompting companies like Amazon.com Inc.,the world s largest Internet retailer, to bring on new workers.The Seattle-based firm announced this month it plans to hire anadditional 1,000 employees, according to the Puget Sound BusinessJournal. Automobile sales are also making a bigger contribution to overallhousehold spending. Demand for cars and light trucks so far thisyear is running at the fastest pace since 2008, according toindustry data. Those gains are having a ripple effect throughmanufacturing and may help counter slowdowns in Europe and Asia. The Institute for Supply Management Inc. s factory index fell to53.8 this month from a 10-month high of 54.8 in April, according tothe Bloomberg survey median ahead of the June 1 report. A readingabove 50 signals expansion. Stock Prices Growing concern over the European debt crisis is weighing oninvestors. The Standard & Poor s 500 Index has fallen 6.3percent so far this month. Falling gas prices and an improving labor market may give a boostto consumer confidence. The Conference Board s gauge climbed to69.5 in May from 69.2 the previous month, according to theBloomberg survey. That would be in line with other measures -- theBloomberg Consumer Comfort Index and the Thomson Reuters/Universityof Michigan index of consumer sentiment -- which have recentlyclimbed to four-year highs. Consumers may also be encouraged by stabilization in the housingmarket, the industry that precipitated the recession. Home pricesdeclined 2.6 percent in the 12 months through March, the smallestdecrease since the year ended December 2010, economists surveyedproject a May 29 report from S&P/Case- Shiller will show. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as China Drinking Glass Cup , Clear Glass Ashtray Manufacturer, and more. For more , please visit Art Glass Perfume Bottles today!
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