NEW OHIO JOB NUMBERS... THE NON-RECOVERY CONTINUES: The Bureau of Labor Statistics posted its May employment numbers for states this morning.

Total nonfarm employment in Ohio in May (seasonally adjusted) was 5,385,600, compared to 5,384,500 in April and 5,385,200 in March. (The April employment figure is significantly lower than originally reported... see below.) That's just four hundred new Ohio jobs in the last two months... during which the national economy supposedly added over half a million.

The May figure is 19,000 jobs below May 2003.

Remember the supposed revival of manufacturing? In Ohio: 827,900 manufacturing jobs in May, compared to 828,800 in April and 828,900 in March.

Easy come, easy go: Last month the BLS reported (on a preliminary basis, as always) a gain of 4,300 nonfarm jobs in Ohio between March and April. This was widely interpreted as evidence that the recovery was finally reaching us.

This month, BLS has revised its April figure downward by 5,000, which means the state actually lost 700 jobs between March and April.