Jobless claims came in below expectations for the week ending December 27. Jefferies chief US economist Thomas Simons joins Brad Smith on Wealth to analyze the implications of this data.
Simons explains that there's a disconnect between labor demand and weekly jobless claims. He shares, "A mentor of mine in the past always cautioned me, 'Don't try to predict employment with an unemployment statistic.'" Additionally, he points out that the figures don't fully capture businesses' reluctance to lay off workers due to concerns about future talent acquisition. However, he suggests this dynamic may shift and recommends monitoring the labor metrics of small businesses and startups.
"Small businesses, I'm talking less than 50 employees, have generally been the major engine for job growth," he tells Yahoo Finance. "We've had a pretty tough time for those businesses in the last couple of years."
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This post was written by Angel Smith