y of the country. In January, it entered its 93rd month of expansion. This by itself is a great indicator that the economy is doing better than ever. Almost every part of it is increasing or improving in a positive direction.Following are some of the economic indicators and how they are behaving and shaping our economy.Unemployment: Economic data reveals that the unemployment rate reached a forty-one year low getting very close to full employment. Unemployment was only 4.3 percent in December. The last time that the unemployment rate became so low was in 1970 - 29 years ago. This shows that the country is using its human resources very well because so few people are unemployed. Also more new jobs were created decreasing the nation's unemployment rate.Housing Starts: Housing starts also improved greatly. Extended warm weather this year allowed construction to continue until very late fall. This also increased employment because workers were hired to build more houses and do other construction such as roofing etc. Retail Sales: U.S. retail sales for November reached $229.4 billion, up 0.6% from last month. (Released 12/11/98)Durable Goods Orders: Since more new houses were built and bought, people also bought more durable goods. More furniture, appliances and other durable goods are usually purchased when more houses are built because every house needs appliances such as refrigerator, washing machines, oven ranges etc.We can see that the economy of the United States is doing more than great. Expansion is the best thing to happen to the economy and it has been expanding for the past 93 months - more than seven and a half years. Unemployment is at its lowest rate since 41 years ago, housing starts are up and most other economic indicators are also doing great. The economy is strong, says Mr. Clinton....
