BLS DAILY REPORT, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 8, 1997 RELEASED TODAY: Unemployment rates for most states showed little movement in November, as 44 states recorded shifts of 0.3 percentage point or less. The national unemployment rate was 5.4 percent in November, up slightly from 5.2 percent in October. Nonfarm payroll employment increased in 40 states and the District of Columbia in November .... Factory orders slipped by 0.4 percent in November, the first decline in three months, the Commerce Department said. Analysts said the report did not alter their view that the economy was growing moderately at year's end ....The decline was due in large part to softer demand for electronic equipment, following hefty gains in October and September (Washington Post, page D9; Daily Labor Report, pages 2,D-1; New York Times, page D18; Wall Street Journal, page A2). Preliminary sales results for December indicate this was good if not great Christmas for retailers, though the final picture will not emerge for a couple of days ....(Daily Labor Report, page A-8)_____Upscale retailers and discount stores appeared to have been the best performers in a Christmas shopping season that produced mixed results ....(New York Times, page D4) Stress borne by an American workforce facing competing demands of dependent care and acquiring new skills to compete is causing a reduction in both job satisfaction and performance, said leading economists at a forum on work restructuring and family conflicts sponsored by the Industrial Relations Research Association at the ASSA meetings in New Orleans ....(Daily Labor Report, page A-10). DUE OUT TOMORROW: Producer Price Indexes -- December 1996
