Recent Economic Perspectives from Bank of America Securities + US Unemployment Rate

Here are the latest economic perspectives/reports from Bank of America Securities:

• Leading Economic Indicators — Calendar with release data, analysis and forecasts on major U.S. economic indicators. Published weekly.

• U.S. Economic Weekly — Analysis and perspective on the U.S. economy. Published weekly.

• U.S. Economic & Financial Forecast — U.S. economic and financial forecast. Published monthly.

• Manufacturing Activity Update — Commentary and analysis of the manufacturing sector. Published monthly.
  

Reading all the reports, it is hard to argue that US economy is quickly entering recession or already in recession. It is not a pretty picture. In addition, the unemployment rate has also been creeping higher nationwide according to Bloomberg:

"Nov. 7 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. unemployment rate rose to the highest level since 1994 as companies slashed payrolls, setting the stage for the steepest economic decline in decades and a tough start for Barrack Obama's presidency.

The jobless rate rose to 6.5 percent in October from 6.1 percent the previous month, the Labor Department reported today in Washington. Employers fired 240,000 workers after a loss of 284,000 in September, the biggest two-month slide since 2001.

The surge in jobless rolls, coupled with other signs the economy nosedived last month, puts pressure on Obama to quickly name his economic team and spell out his planned remedies. It may also spur congressional Democrats to enact in coming weeks a second fiscal stimulus package..."

Source: Bloomberg - U.S. Unemployment Rate Climbs to 14-Year High of 6.5%

The news above is based on the latest Current Population Survey (CPS), a monthly survey of households conducted by the Bureau of Census for the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

November 07, 2008
Nonfarm payroll employment fell by 240,000 in October. Job losses over the last 3 months totaled 651,000. In October, the unemployment rate rose from 6.1 to 6.5 percent, and the number of unemployed persons increased to 10.1 million. More...
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Source: Bureau of Census for the Bureau of Labor Statistics