BLS Daily Report

[Richardson_D <Richardson_D@xxxxxxx>]

BLS DAILY REPORT, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2000

RELEASED TODAY:  The average annual pay of all workers covered by state and
federal unemployment insurance (UI) programs rose 4.3 percent to $33,313 in
1999, according to preliminary data.  This compares with a 5.2 percent rise
in 1998.  The annual pay of private industry workers, comprising 84.7
percent of the nation's employment, grew 4.6 percent in 1999, while pay for
government workers rose 2.7 percent.  In 1998, the increase in pay for
private sector workers was 5.6 percent and for government workers, 3.2
percent. ...

__Subsiding energy prices curbed overall inflation last month, as the CPI-U
rose just 0.2 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  The
October advance was smaller than many analysts had predicted, and some say
it means the worst is over on energy prices. ...  Over the year ended in
October, the CPI-U is up by 3.4 percent, an acceleration from the 2.7
percent for all of 1999. ...  (Daily Labor Report, page D-1)..
__Consumer prices rose a moderate 0.2 percent last month, as energy prices
showed little change after their surge the month before.  Over the past 12
months, the CPI has risen 3.4 percent, with 0.8 percentage point of that
increase due to energy prices going up much faster than those of other goods
and services included in the CPI's marketbasket of items Americans buy. ...
(John M. Berry in Washington Post, page E3).
__Consumers paid only slightly more for goods last moth than they had in
September, but inflation is still headed for its largest annual increase
since 1990. ...  Over the last 12 months, average weekly wages have actually
fallen 0.2 percent, when adjusted for inflation, BLS said in a separate
announcement.  The wage numbers covered production and nonsupervisory
employees, who make up about 80 percent of the work force and now earn an
average annual salary of about $25,000. ...  One disconcerting item in the
inflation column:  Natural gas prices keep rising.. ...  "Natural gas prices
have gone through the roof this year," said Patrick C. Jackman, an economist
at BLS. ...  (David Leonhardt in New York Times, page C12).
__After years of dormancy, inflation seems to be stirring.  Consumer prices
have advanced at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.6 percent so far
this year, far higher than a 2.7 percent increase seen for all of last year.
Core prices, which exclude the volatile energy and food sectors, rose at an
annual rate of 2.7 percent in the first 10 months, compared with a gain of
just 1.9 percent for the entire year last year. ...  To be sure, inflation
remains tame by historical standards.  Import prices are still falling,
thanks to the strong dollar, wholesale prices have been stable, and massive
gains in work-force productivity have helped many companies absorb higher
energy and labor costs without having to boost their prices accordingly. ...
(Yochi J. Dreazen in Wall Street Journal, page A2).

Real average weekly earnings were unchanged between September and October as
average wage increases were offset by decreases in the number of hours
worked and a slight increase in the cost of consumer goods [sic], BLS says.
...  (Daily Labor Report, page D-14).

Initial claims for unemployment insurance benefits filed with state agencies
decreased by 20,000 to a seasonally adjusted 326,000 in the week ended Nov.
11, the Employment and Training Administration announces.  State officials
in Michigan attributed their large increase to layoffs in the auto industry,
while California officials blamed their increase on layoffs in the
construction and trade industries and in agriculture. ...  (Daily Labor
Report, page D-18).

Growth in the U.S. economy likely will slow into the fourth quarter of this
year, but gross domestic product growth should stay solid at 3.6 percent for
2001, University of Michigan economists predict at their annual outlook
conference.  They expect inflation to subside somewhat, as tight labor
markets keep pressure on wages next year. ...  The forecast projects a 3.8
percent GDP growth for 2002. ...  (Daily Labor Report, page A-2).

Even affluent families may have a hard time saving enough to pay for their
children's college education and their own retirement, says a study by four
economists -- including Laura Tyson and Joseph Stiglitz, former chairman of
the President's Council of Economic Advisers -- for UPromise, a college
savings network.  If recent trends continue, the average annual tuition bill
at a 4-year college will be more than $31,000 in 2020.  But nearly
two-thirds of parents with children younger than 18 failed to save any money
in 1998.  Inadequate savings force many families to finance college costs
with extra jobs, retirement funds, or second mortgages (USA Today, page 1B).

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