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Unemployment
Term category: Economics
In 10 words or less:  An economic indicator that shows how many people are without work.

Definition: A carefully-watched economic indicator representing the percent of the labor force that's actively seeking employment.

StockJargon Advice: The unemployment rate is a sign of how the economy has been doing. But it's a lagging indicator, meaning it only confirms what's been going on. It can't predict the future.

Historically, the unemployment rate has varied between 2-10%. Its historical average is around 5% (which is called "full employment").

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