It's unkown at this point whether some of the good news on jobs is the result of holiday hiring or whether we have perhaps finally turned a corner and could see some real relief for the unemployed. Reuters: Although growth is quickening from the third quarter's 2 percent annual rate, analysts caution that troubles in debt-stricken Europe pose a major risk to the U.S. economy. The fourth quarter growth pace is expected to top 3 percent. Much of the rest of the global economy is already weakening, with the euro zone expected to slip into recession. The U.S. economy also faces a risk that lawmakers will fail to extend a payroll tax cut and emergency jobless benefits that expire at year end, which would dent the expansion in 2012. For now, however, it continues to show resilience. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 19,000 to 366,000, the lowest since May 2008, the Labor Department said. That follows on the heels of a report earlier this month that showed the jobless...(Read Full Post)