Without more jobs, Americans are likely to remain cautious with their spending, restraining the economic rebound, they said. But without more spending, companies will probably be slow to hire.
“To break out of this, we need both employment and consumption to come up together,’’ said Nigel Gault, an economist at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Mass.
Today the government will release its snapshot of the nation’s job market for July, and no one expects anything strong. Private companies are expected to have added 90,000 jobs for the month, not nearly enough for healthy economic growth.
The overall figure is expected to show a loss of 65,000 jobs for July, because of the end of temporary positions with the US Census Bureau. Unemployment is not expected to budge much from its current 9.5 percent, and it may rise.
“With limited hiring by the private sector, it is becoming increasingly difficult for the recovery to be sustained,’’ said Andrew Gledhill, an economist at Moody’s Economy.com.
In a reminder of how weak the job market is, the government said yesterday that first-time claims for unemployment benefits rose last week to their highest level in four months.
Claims rose by 19,000 to a seasonally adjusted 479,000. Analysts had expected a small drop. Claims have now risen twice in the past three weeks. Initial jobless claims because they are considered a gauge employers’ willingness to hire.
Shoppers are buying items closer to when they actually needed to use them — a phenomenon known in the clothing industry as “buy now, wear now.’’ To make up for it, stores are “going to have to be very promotional all the way through,’’ said Ken Perkins, president RetailMetrics.
