In the news, there is corroboration for two trends we’ve been observing.
- In a survey a consensus of economists now believe the winter slowdown in the United States was weather-related and expect improvement as we get farther into spring. Previously, you could find conservative-leaning economists and ones based in California who were skeptical of the weather effects, but several early indicators from unemployment reports to health care sign-ups seem consistent with a pronounced weather effect in half of the country.
- The Bureau of Labor Statistics found near record high levels of temporary and contract workers in March, which seems to be part of the broad shift toward a more loosely structured workforce that observers have been tracking for some time.
