Ouch

Initial unemployment claims, the best leading indicator we’ve got:

In the week ending Dec. 6, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 573,000, an increase of 58,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 515,000. The 4-week moving average was 540,500, an increase of 14,250 from the previous week’s revised average of 526,250.

Expect to hear things like “teetering on the edge of a depression” from hysterical commentators later today.