() New York – June US payrolls dropped 125,000, the most job cuts since October, but the downturn in payroll figures was due to government layoffs of census workers.  Businesses actually added 85,000 positions while the government laid off 225,000 to place the June unemployment rate at 9.5%, 0.02% lower than May’s 9.7% rate.

Setting aside the 225,000 temporary jobs created by the census, job pundits at large were expecting to see about 110,000 jobs added to payrolls in the private sector in June, so while only 85,000 jobs where added, the results are still below market expectations.

Weakness in the job market added to Friday’s downturn in the stock market with the Dow down nearly 17 points at 9,715.

Adding to the job woes, factory orders in May were down 1.4%.  Less the more-volatile transportation sector, factory orders in May fell 0.6%, compared to a 1.0% increase the prior month.  If you factor in the recent sharp decline in consumer confidence it could mean fewer jobs ahead in the manufacturing sector as employers take a ‘wait and see’ approach toward the US economy.

If you factor in the number of people who’ve been displaced since the recession began along with population growth, the job market would need to create 7.9 million jobs just to return to pre-recession levels.

Lawmakers in Washington are battling over an extension of unemployment benefits with Republicans unwilling to accept the bill as presented by Democrats.  Government labor sources say if those out of work Americans don’t receive another extension of unemployment benefits as many as 3.3 million workers will be without financial aid.  That could mean a surge in jobless Americans who just give up looking for work while at the same time it would create a false downturn in the nation’s unemployment rate.

Thursday, the House of Representatives voted 270-153 to restore benefits for more than 1 million people whose payments ran out in early June.  The bill is now stalled in the Senate.  Senate Republicans object to the deficit spending.  Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown introduced his own compromise bill late Wednesday that would use funds from the leftover $37 billion in stimulus funding to fund unemployment extension benefits and Medicaid, though tagged onto Brown’s legislation is $600 million for Massachusetts Medicaid costs.

Sen. Brown said,

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My spouse and I share just about everything including all our bank accounts.  In fact, neither one of use has an individual account; they are all joint accounts including our credit cards. I have found out over the years that we are probably in the minority, as many couples tend to keep separate banking and credit card accounts.

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A debit card is not a credit card. There is no credit involved in using this type of card. When the card is swiped for a purchase, the purchase amount is automatically withdrawn from the associated checking account. Therefore, users are not borrowing money to use the debit card but merely removing their own money from their accounts.

In this situation, it can be a good idea to allow your older teen to use a debit card. Here are some examples of how this can be a good experience for your child.

Teach Wise Spending Habits Now: The use of a debit card allows your children to learn how to make wise purchases.

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() New York – Gasoline prices at the pump are on the rise as the summer’s peak driving period begins with the national price for a gallon of regular gasoline now $2.76 per gallon, though those levels are more than 11 cents more per gallon than year ago levels, implying consumers are in for one hot summer at the pump.

While prices nationwide are far higher than at this time last year, energy pundits say there’s no need to panic as supply levels are high enough that in most states gasoline prices will remain below $3.00 per gallon.

AAA noted that the average price for a gallon or regular gasoline rose only 2 cents a gallon over week-ago levels and that a month ago, the national average price was only one-penny more.

Yet in watching the wholesale price for gasoline in New York, the commodity price ebbed slightly lower Monday in early afternoon RBOB trading to $2.14 per gallon for a loss of 2.4 cents, or 1.13%.

At the same time, crude oil futures have climbed to $78.32 per barrel, which is down 54 cents from this morning.

Despite supply levels, the 4th of July will mark the peak driving period for the summer when American families are expected to consume more fuel as they head out on the highway for vacation, though travel is not expected to rise to such a degree that gasoline supply levels will become scarce, prompting stations to raise prices abnormally.

Most of the nation’s higher prices can be found in Western states where the average price ranges from $2.85 to $3.50 per gallon.  The cheapest gasoline prices can be found in Texas and some Central States where gasoline prices range from $2.51 to $2.63 per gallon.

Still, fuel prices in general will remain sensitive to economic data and it might be wise for consumers to consider filling up their tanks in advance of the 4th of July period when prices at the pump will no doubt increase.

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In order to ensure that the customers are relieved from the burden of their debt to a certain extent the Federal Reserve, in the beginning of last week, enforced a few more rules and regulations that credit card issuers need to abide by. These rules have been enforced to ensure that customers don’t get penalized for the smallest of errors.

Thanks to the implementation of these new credit card rules, the days when customers had to pay exorbitant amount as fees to the credit card companies will soon become a thing of the past.

There are a number of new laws that are designed to favor customers and give them the much needed relief and provide a way to clear off their credit card dues faster. I

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