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January 18, 2010 3:06 PM

The Unemployment Gap

By
Mark Thoma
(MoneyWatch)  The dream has not yet been fully realized (the figures show unemployment rates, click on figures for larger, clearer versions):

Un4

Un1

Un2

Un3


It's not just the levels that differ, there is also a big difference in the variance of the two series (an indicator of the risk that a household will face changes in income due to unemployment spells).

© 2010 CBS Interactive Inc.. All Rights Reserved.
  • Mark Thoma

    >> View all articles

    Mark Thoma is a macroeconomist and time-series econometrician at the University of Oregon. His research focuses on how monetary policy affects the economy, and he has also worked on political business cycle models and models of transportation dynamics. Mark blogs daily at Economist's View. Follow him on Twitter at @MarkThoma.

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