Corporate Layoff Cycle Seems to Be Taking a Break

I've been showing this chart for quite some time, and it was one of the early indicators of significant improvement in the economy.

Big corporate layoff announcements are essentially a thing of the past, according to this tally by the folks at Challenger, Gray & Christmas. While that is not the same as a wave of new hiring, it is the first step on the path to a growing economy and an increase in the number of jobs.

The good news just keeps coming, but the market remains highly skeptical. Investors continue to climb walls of worry, and that's what a bull market is all about.

Comments

[market ace:]

Wow what fantastic news here. I guess when you run out of employees to lay off job losses have to decline. Still 530,000 new unemployment claims per week though. There are absolutely no prospects for job creation in the US and the stimulus welfare bill did nothing to stimulate long term job creation so now congress is extending unemployment benefits as they know there will be no new jobs for a long time. Without income growth there is nothing that can possibly sustain a recovery.

I think you have confused a bull market with a BS market as the only growth going on is in the size of gov't, the increase in gov't debt and the increase in wasteful gov't spending.

Nov 04 05:47 PM

[chris coonan:]

what about microsoft, ford, and Johnson & Johnson announcements? i heard that Gensler Architects just had a big layoff too...in a field that already has 50% unemployment....

Nov 04 10:59 PM