Auto Care Insider Volume 109 - 20

MARKET
INTELLIGENCE
By Dr. Timothy G. Nash

OVERVIEW OF AUTO CARE
ASSOCIATION'S LATEST INDUSTRY
INDICATORS REPORT
THE U.S. economy showed strong
signs of life creating more than 228,000
jobs in November - slightly lower
than October, but much improved
from the weak results in September
which reported a loss of 33,000
jobs due to the negative impact of
hurricanes primarily in Texas and
Florida. The November jobs report
was an impressive validation of wide
ranging job creation across most
categories as the economy has
produced more than 1.4 million new
jobs in 2017 according to U.S. Bureau
of Labor Statistics (BLS) data.
	 The November figures were
somewhat disappointing as many
economists were expecting job
creation to come close to producing
280,000 new jobs for the month with
the economy having created over
1.6 million new jobs since President

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AUTO CARE INSIDER  |  VOL. 109

Trump took office according to the
BLS. The unemployment rate remained
at 4.1 percent, an almost 17-year
low with 14 states recording their
lowest unemployment rates ever. The
November labor force participation
rate of 62.7 percent was disappointing,
matching the October figure which
showed fewer people working overall
due to retirements and a lack of good
quality jobs being created. The current
U.S. labor force participation rate is
among the lowest rates this country
has seen in forty years. Average
hourly earnings decreased slightly in
November down .02 to $26.26 per hour.
	 The U.S. national debt is now just
over 20 trillion dollars or 105 percent
of U.S. GDP, with the specter of higher
interest rates posing an additional drag
on the U.S. economy in the future. Real
Wages remain sluggish, with consumer

spending leading the economy again
in November. We must produce real
average hourly earnings growth of 3
percent or greater if average U.S. GDP
growth is to return to 3.5 percent or
higher. Over the last 12 months, U.S.
real wages have increased roughly
1.62 percent as a result of sluggish
economic growth. U.S. GDP has grown
at just under 2 percent on an annualized
basis since 2009, but is showing signs
of strong improvement so far in 2017.
	 The U.S. continues to receive little
help from the global economy as China
and others grew at a slower pace
than predicted pace in 2017 and is
providing less than expected market
growth for U.S. exports. Through 11
months, consumer spending continues
to be the brightest spot of the U.S.
economy and could pick up steam in
the future with the potential of enhanced
https://www.autocare.org/What-We-Do/Market-Intelligence/industry-indicators/
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Auto Care Insider Volume 109
