The Dept. of Labor reveals [DATA HERE] initial claims for unemployment fell again last week, creating the following Reuters headline: “The number of Americans filing applications for unemployment benefits fell last week in a sign of ongoing labor market strength.”   Another strong labor report, followed by another media report outlining how the results beat all economic analyst expectations; a consistent theme throughout 2019.

White House – DRIVING A RECORD-SETTING ECONOMY: The booming economy and strong labor market allow Americans of all backgrounds to find work and succeed.

♦ The current labor market revival is not a continuation of past trends, but instead a direct result of President Trump’s pro-growth policies.

• Since President Trump was elected, more than 7 million jobs have been added to our economy – surpassing the Congressional Budget Office’s predictions by 5 million jobs.
• This year, the unemployment rate has fallen to 3.5%, its lowest level in 50 years.
• Unemployment for African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, veterans, individuals with disabilities, and those without a high school diploma have all reached record lows under President Trump.
• The President’s policies are bringing people off the sidelines and into the labor force.
• The prime age labor force has grown by 2.1 million under President Trump.
• The surge in labor demand has resulted in 7 million job openings, which outnumber job seekers by more than 1 million.
• Before President Trump took office, there had never been more recorded job openings than unemployed workers.

♦ LOWERING INEQUALITY: President Trump’s policies are helping forgotten Americans across the country prosper, driving down income inequality.

• Annual nominal wages grew by 3 percent in 2019 for the first time in a decade.
• Nominal wage growth has now been at or above 3 percent for 16 straight months.
• Wage growth for many previously forgotten groups is now higher than wage growth for more advantaged groups.
• This is the case for lower-income workers compared to higher-income workers, workers compared to managers, and African Americans compared to white Americans.
• These income gains mark a fundamental change compared to before President Trump’s inauguration, contributing to reduced income inequality.
• When measured as the share of income earned by the top 20 percent, income inequality fell in 2018 by the largest amount in over a decade.
• The Gini coefficient, an overall measure of inequality in the population, also fell in 2018.

At 3.7 percent, November year-over-year wage growth for production and nonsupervisory workers was near a post-recession high achieved last month and again exceeded overall year-over-year wage growth.

From the start of the current expansion to the end of 2016, average wage growth for production and nonsupervisory workers lagged that of managers, the bottom 10 percent of wage earners lagged that of the top 10 percent, those without a college degree lagged that of college graduates, and African Americans lagged that of white Americans.

However, since President Trump took office, each of these trends has been reversed, contributing to lower income inequality.

♦ LIFTING UP AMERICANS: The booming economy is lifting millions of Americans out of poverty and providing all people with the opportunity for a brighter future.

• In 2018 alone, nearly 1.4 million Americans were lifted out of poverty.
• The poverty rates for African Americans and Hispanic Americans reached historic lows in 2018.
• Over 600,000 children being raised by single mothers were lifted out of poverty in 2018.
• The number of people claiming unemployment insurance as a share of the population is the lowest on record.
• Nearly 7 million fewer people are on food stamps than at the time of the 2016 election.
• 380,000 fewer people are on Social Security Disability insurance than before the 2016 election.

Americans in economically-distressed communities are benefiting from increased investment thanks to the Opportunity Zones included in President Trump’s historic tax reform.

As further evidence of how much the labor market has improved under President Trump, other data released by BLS  show that the number of people who experienced unemployment last year declined by 2.4 million compared to 2016. This number should decline again in 2019 because, under the Trump Administration, the number of people claiming unemployment insurance as a share of the population is the lowest on record since the data began in 1967.

Whooo-doggies, middle-class Americans spent more this holiday shopping season than any year before it.  Despite losing a week due to the late Thanksgiving holiday, total Christmas sales growth was +3.4 percent year-over-year.

(Reuters) […] The holiday shopping season is a crucial period for retailers and can account for up to 40% of annual sales. But this year, Thanksgiving, which traditionally starts the U.S. holiday shopping period, was on Nov. 28, nearly a week later than last year’s Nov. 22, leaving retailers with six fewer days to drive sales between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

E-commerce sales this year made up 14.6% of total retail and rose 18.8% from the 2018 period, according to Mastercard’s data tracking retail sales from Nov. 1 through Christmas Eve. Overall holiday retail sales, excluding autos, rose 3.4%.

“E-commerce sales hit a record high this year with more people doing their holiday shopping online,” said Steve Sadove, senior adviser for Mastercard.

Now watch the Reuters spin…

U.S. President Donald Trump, whose support in the polls has been buoyed by strong economic data despite his impeachment by the House of Representatives, heralded the news in a tweet in all capital letters.

“2019 HOLIDAY RETAIL SALES WERE UP 3.4% FROM LAST YEAR, THE BIGGEST NUMBER IN U.S. HISTORY. CONGRATULATIONS AMERICA!,” Trump tweeted.

However, Mastercard spokesman William Tsang, citing 2018’s 5.1% growth in total sales, said this year’s holiday sales growth was not the biggest ever.

The White House had no immediate comment on the apparent discrepancy.

Despite slowing global growth, U.S. consumer spending is benefiting from wage growth and a strong labor market, retail consultants and analysts say. (link)

There is no discrepancy.  Trump’s tweet was recognizing the record-breaking total amount of U.S. sales, not simply the growth rate.   Knuckleheads.   Mamet principle on full display.

Total Holiday Sales an outcome of a very strong economy, low unemployment, low inflation, higher wages and more disposable income… MAGAnomics at work.

Keep in mind U.S. GDP growth is driven by consumer spending.  A whopping 3.4% gain year-over-year is tens of billions more in economic activity.  More WINNING !

Today President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump share their Christmas message to all Americans.

Presidential Message on Christmas

Melania and I send our warmest greetings to those celebrating Christmas in the United States and around the world. During this joyous time of year, we join a grateful Nation in thanking God for His abundant blessings and boundless love.

As families, friends, and communities come together to rejoice in the birth of Christ, we are reminded of the divine message from the first Christmas: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” While the challenges that face our country are great, the bonds that unite us as Americans are much stronger. Together, we must strive to foster a culture of deeper understanding and respect—traits that exemplify the teachings of Christ.

As we celebrate Christmas, we remember the precious religious liberties our forefathers so righteously fought to secure. We also pause to pay tribute to those courageous men and women of our Armed Forces who continue to fight for our cherished freedoms. As Commander in Chief, I salute them for their service and thank their family members for their shared sacrifice in this noble mission, especially during the holiday season.

We hope your heart is filled with the love and joy of your faith, family, and friends this Christmas. We send our best wishes for a merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year.

Donald J Trump

Perhaps the status of the economy in China is even worse than many have suspected.  An interesting public statement from their State Council today highlights a promise by China to support jobs during their current economic downturn.

Against the backdrop of Hong Kong’s protests toward Beijing oppression, a rebellion of the people against the command authority is the single-most feared action by those in charge of government.  If the economy is in worse position than previously thought, this latest statement might explain some of Beijings’ recent trade and economic concessions.

(Reuters) – China will step up support for employment to cope with rising pressure on job security due to internal and external challenges, the cabinet said on Tuesday, as the world’s second-largest economy slows.

Simultaneous downturns in the services and manufacturing industries pose a major problem for authorities seeking to keep a lid on unemployment and prevent social unrest as economic growth decelerates to near three-decade lows.

“At present, China’s employment situation is generally stable, but risks and challenges at home and abroad are increasing and the pressure to stabilise employment is increasing,” the State Council said in a statement.

The government will attach equal importance to creating new jobs and safeguarding existing jobs, and make more effort to head off risks of unemployment, it said.

China will step up financial support for private and small firms, including implementing targeted reserve requirement cuts and encouraging banks to boost long-term loans to small firms in the manufacturing sector, the cabinet said. (read more)

There are always lags within economies based on adverse conditions.  The economic landscape today is likely the surfacing of economic conditions six months ago (+/-).

It was always a question of when the devaluing of currency and over-use of state subsidies to cover financial gaps caused by the trade conflict would surface.  Perhaps Beijing is responding to the beginning of those consequences?…

Following a Christmas eve call to U.S. service members, President Trump answers questions on a variety of topics from the press pool.  [Video Below]

Earlier this morning Commander-in-Chief President Donald Trump hosted a Christmas Eve video teleconference with members of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard to thank them for their service and wish them a merry Christmas.

Participating on the call were: ♦ARMY Unit: 103 Sustained Command, Location: Camp Arifjan, Kuwait Captain Roxanna Flores.  ♦MARINE CORPS Unit: Task Force Southwest 19.2, Location: Camp Shorab, Afghanistan, Brigadier General David Odom. ♦NAVY
Unit: USS Forest Sherman (DDG 98), Location: Gulf of Aden, Commander Frank Azzarello.  ♦AIR FORCE Unit: 20th Attack Squadron, Location: Whiteman AFB, Missouri
Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Wassmuth; and ♦COAST GUARD Unit: CG Air Station Sitka,
Location: Sitka, Alaska, Captain Michael Frawley.  [Video Below]

Jumping Ju-Ju Bones, Santa cancelled the recession!!

According to the latest data stats from last weekend, Saturday holiday shopping in the U.S. was more than $34.4 billion in sales.  That’s the largest single day in the history of U.S. retail sales.  Higher wages, record employment, low inflation, consumer confidence and economic security means more disposable income… boy howdy, these numbers are huge.

Keep in mind U.S. retail sales account for two-thirds of U.S. GDP growth. Wow:

(MSM-Bloomberg) Holiday shopping set records over the weekend, with Super Saturday sales reaching $34.4 billion, the biggest single day in U.S. retail history, according to Customer Growth Partners.

“Paced by the ‘Big Four’ mega-retailers — Walmart, Amazon, Costco and Target — Super Saturday was boosted by the best traffic our team has seen in years,” said Craig Johnson, president of the retail research firm.

Job growth and fatter wallets, along with stronger household finances, have put consumers in a buying mood this season, Johnson said. And more of them are shopping online. As retailers offer improved web platforms, online spending so far this season has accounted for 58% of sales growth from a year earlier, he said.

Super Saturday’s results topped Black Friday’s $31.2 billion in sales by 10%. The next biggest shopping days were Dec. 14, with $28.1 billion, and Cyber Monday, with $19.1 billion. (more)

Tax cuts and regulatory reform; USMCA trade agreement negotiated and passed; Mexico halting illegal migration flows; new central American amnesty agreements; border wall under construction; lower energy costs; lower and stabilized fuel costs; highest blue collar wage gains in decades; largest resurgence of manufacturing jobs in 50 years; Korea-US trade agreement (KORUS); U.S-Japan trade agreement; U.S-China trade agreement (phase-1); withdrawal from Trans-Pacific multinationals (TPP); dissolution of Paris climate treaty; approval for ANWR energy development; five new gasoline refineries; U.S. energy independence; U.S. worlds largest producer of energy; LNG energy exports; elimination of excessive federal regulations; SNAP reforms; 3.5% unemployment; largest employed U.S. workforce in history; 150,000 employer registrations to U.S. trade-skills apprenticeship; seven new industrial steel manufacturing plants; low and stable 1.5% inflation; highest GDP growth amid industrial nations; highest consumer confidence in decades; highest small business confidence in decades; 7.3 million jobs available (JOLTS); one year net employment gain 2.4 million workers; two supreme court justices; no new wars; NATO countries stepping up defense financing; troops coming home; pay raises for military; VA Choice created; right-to-try legislation passed; U.S. embassy in Jerusalem; North Korean hostages released; ISIS destroyed, caliphate dismantled; al-Bagdadi dead.  These are just a few of President Trump’s recent accomplishments off the top of my head:

Donald J Trump was the only candidate in 2016 who knew how to use China’s panda playbook against them.  Thus, when you plant your tree in another man’s orchard, don’t be surprised when he charges you to harvest your own apples…

BEIJING (Reuters) – China will lower import tariffs on over 850 products from Jan. 1, including frozen pork and frozen avocado, the finance ministry said.

It will also further lower import tariffs on some information technology products from July 1 next year, said the ministry, in a statement on its website. (link)