MMAC: Milwaukee-area economy still sluggish - Dayton Business Journal:

hundleyobajoji1908.blogspot.com
Only three of 20 April indicators registerexd improvementfrom year-ago levels, matching the number of upward-pointiny indicators recorded in March, the MMAC said in its Economic Trends "The employment situation continued to deterioratwe with deepening job declines and unemployment indicators over double what they were one year said Bret Mayborne, economic research director for the "But metro area existing homes sales rose for only the second time in nearly three years givinh some hope for near-term improvemenrt in a stagnant local housing and real estate market." Nonfarnm employment in the metrlo area fell 4.8 percent in Apri to 812,300, down from March’s 4.
3 percent decrease. Employmenr levels have now declined comparedwith year-ago levele in each of the past 12 months, with April’s declinre being the steepest registered in this period, the MMAC said. Only two of 10 majort industry sectors registered April job gains comparec with oneyear ago, while eight registered declines. Unemploymenf indicators for the metro area both measuredr more than twicetheir year-earlier levels. The numbeer of unemployed in metro Milwaukeerose 117.6% agains t year-ago levels, to 70,300 comparef with 32,300 in April 2008. Likewise, new unemploymenr compensation claims rose ata 104.
6 percent rate in Aprilk to 12,101, this indicator’s thircd consecutive year-over-year increase of 100 percent or On the positive side, existing homes salesw for the metro area rose 5.6 percent in April, the firstt year-over-year increase in this indicator in seve months and only the second such gain in nearly three years.