December Jobs Report + 18,000 Jobs

The housing issues and liquidity crisis are starting to make their way into the rest of the market. A mere 18,000 jobs were created in December and unemployment jumped from 4.7% to 5%. I read before that it takes about 180,000 new jobs per month to keep up with the new job seekers, basically to keep unemployment steady. It seems high to me, but that is what the talking heads on CNBC reported. I hope the job frontier in Arizona bodes better. One thing the jobs report does not show is all the now unemployed Realtors and Loan officers that don't receive a regular pay check because they are on commission.

Here is the article about the jobs report.

Unemployment Up, Stoking Recession Fears
By JEANNINE AVERSA,
AP
Posted: 2008-01-04 17:15:45
WASHINGTON (AP) - Wary employers clamped down on hiring and pushed the unemployment rate to a two-year high of 5 percent in December, an ominous sign that the economy may slide into recession. President Bush explored a rescue package, including a tax cut, with his economic advisers.

http://money.aol.com/news/articles/_a/unemployment-up-stoking-recession-fears/n20080104171509990023