[PEN-L:503] BLS Daily Report

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BLS DAILY REPORT, FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 1998:

Today's News Release:  "Consumer Expenditures in 1996" indicates that
the average annual expenditures per consumer unit rose 4.8 percent in
1996, the largest increase since 1989, according to results from BLS's
Consumer Expenditure Survey.  Expenditures rose 1.7 percent in 1995 and
3.4 percent in 1994.  The increase in expenditures from 1995 to 1996 was
larger than the 3.0 percent annual average rise in the CPI over this
period.  

New claims filed with state agencies for unemployment insurance benefits
increased by 11,000 to a seasonally adjusted total of 300,000 for the
week ending October 3, the Employment and Training Administration of the
Department of Labor reports.  Florida officials noted that Hurricane
Georges caused local unemployment claims offices in Florida to close for
2 days, and resulted in fewer layoffs in the construction, trade,
service industries, manufacturing, and agriculture sectors, thus
curtailing the level of claims that might otherwise have been filed
(Daily Labor Report, page D1).
__The rise in first-time claims for state unemployment insurance is
still indicative of a tight labor market.  The 4-week moving overage for
claims - considered a better gauge of economic conditions - fell by
3,500 to 295,750.  That figure represented the lowest level since
February 1989 (The Wall Street Journal, page A2).

U.S. businesses and their workers are experiencing some ill effects of
the spreading global economic crisis, as analysts try to gauge how long
it will last.  Lost exports are prompting layoffs in a variety of
industries across the country, with high-tech firms, energy and
agriculture firms bearing the brunt so far.  Layoff announcements more
frequently are being linked to the global crisis, including cutbacks
announced by big U.S. consumer product manufactures that had appeared
insulated given their size and scope of products sold around the world.
Forecasters are talking more about the possibility of a U.S. recession,
but most say the odds are that growth will slow down over the next
several months without a severe downturn.  The latest report from
Challenger, Gray & Christmas showed that 61 percent of the roughly
73,000 layoffs announced by U.S. firms in September were attributed to
international factors.  For example, among other industries that are
bearing the brunt of the crisis are textile and apparel industries,
especially those in the Southeast, several analysts said.  While both of
these industries have seen their payrolls shrink for many years, they
have been hit hardest recently by a flood of imports, particularly from
Asian countries trying to bolster their trade income (Daily Labor
Report, page C-1).

The House Government Reform and Oversight Committee has canceled the
markup of the Statistical Compilation Act of 1998, which could have led
to the consolidation of the government's three statistical agencies into
one independent federal agency.  The legislative director of the AFL-CIO
says that although the bill,  originally scheduled for an October 8
markup, will not see any more legislative action in the House this year,
it may be reconsidered in the next session of Congress.  The Statistical
Compilation Act of 1998 would establish an eight-member commission to
examine whether and how to fold BLS, BEA, and Census into one agency
(Daily Labor Report, page A-9).

U.S. households' heating bills this winter will be higher because of
expected colder temperatures than last season, the federal Energy
Information Administration predicted.  The forecast was made despite a
3-to-5-cent-a-gallon drop in heating oil and propane prices.  Natural
gas prices are expected to be lower in the fourth quarter compared with
last year, but higher in the first quarter of 1999 compared with last
winter because of an increase in demand due to colder weather (The
Washington Post, page G1).

The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank wound up their annual
meetings today, saying that the United States will bear most of the
burden of helping Asia and the rest of the developing world get out of a
recession.  America's relatively strong economy will draw in the exports
of crisis-stricken countries at the same time that foreign demand for
American goods is weakened.  One implication of that is that a steady
increase in competitively priced imports can, over time, lead to an
erosion of American market share and jobs (The New York Times, page A8).
__Jolted by the deteriorating global economic pictures and a likely
squeeze on profits, a majority of chief executive officers say they will
reduce capital spending and hire fewer workers in coming quarters.
According to a survey released by the Business Council, 95 percent of
CEOs believe financial troubles in the world's emerging markets will
affect them; 41 percent said the effects would be "significant" (The
Wall Street Journal, page A2).


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