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Guidance for bars, restaurants, large event venues: Los Angeles County’s public health director said Thursday, indoor bars and large event venues such as Dodger Stadium have been in generally good compliance with new COVID-19 vaccination requirements for patrons, acknowledging that the adjustment to enforcing the rules can take time.

But overall, health inspectors have not reported any major issues, Barbara Ferrer said.

Ferrer said inspectors also found high compliance at indoor bars, which are now required to verify proof of at least one vaccine dose for employees and patrons. Full vaccination will be required Nov. 4.She acknowledged that inspectors visited only a small fraction of the county’s thousands of indoor bars, but she was “pleased with where we are” with compliance from bars and event venues.

Ferrer also noted that officials at outdoor venues and the county’s two theme parks — Six Flags Magic Mountain and Universal Studios Hollywood — have reported that “the vast majority” of patrons are arriving equipped with required vaccine verification documents.

An additional 1,142 cases also were reported, giving the county a cumulative pandemic total of 1,474,518.

The rolling daily average rate of people testing positive for the virus remained low at 0.99%.

After three days of increases, the number of COVID-19-positive patients in county hospitals fell Thursday. According to state figures, there were 658 COVID-19-positive patients as of Thursday, down from 698 on Wednesday. Of the hospitalized patients, 192 were being treated in intensive care units, down from 193 on Wednesday.

The number of COVID-19 patients in county hospitals has declined 37 times in the past 45 days.

Ferrer continued to lament the slow pace of people getting vaccinated, saying only about 41,000 first doses were administered across the county during the week that ended Sunday. She said “the single thing that we need to do as a community to reduce our risk of another surge is we need to decrease our numbers of unvaccinated people.”

According to Ferrer, 79% of eligible county residents ages 12 and older have received at least one dose of vaccine, and 70% are fully vaccinated.

Among the overall 10.3 million population, including those ineligible for shots, 68% have received at least one dose, and 60% are fully vaccinated.

U.S. health advisers endorsed a booster of Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine Friday, citing concern that Americans who got the singledose shot aren’t as protected as those given two dose brands.

J& J told the Food and Drug Administration that an extra dose adds important protection as early as two months after initial vaccination — but that it might work better if people wait until six months later. Unable to settle the best timing, the FDA’s advisory panel voted unanimously that the booster should be offered at least two months after people got their earlier shot.

The Economy: From Jonathan Lansner in the Pasadena Star-News: Inflation in Riverside and San Bernardino counties hit an annual rate of 6.8% for September, the highest rate among all 23 metros and four times above its 1.7% rate in September 2020, according to the consumer price index compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Los Angeles and Orange counties’ inflation rate was 4.6% for September — No. 13. That’s almost quadruple 1.2% from a year earlier. The nation’s inflation ran at a 5.4% annual pace for September vs. 5.3% the month before and 1.4% a year earlier. This is the biggest jump in the cost of living since 2008, created by surging prices of goods from gasoline to used cars to food to travel.

U.S. consumer prices rose 0.4% in September from August as the costs of new cars, food, gas, and restaurant meals all jumped.

The annual increase in the consumer price index matched readings in June and July as the highest in 13 years, the Labor Department said Wednesday. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core inflation rose 0.2% in September and 4% compared with a year ago. Core prices hit a three-decade high of 4.5% in June.

Caveat: Perhaps the only good news: The Social Security Administration said the nation’s inflation surge means all of the program’s beneficiaries will see a cost-of-living adjustment next year of 5.9% — highest in 39 years and roughly a $92 month boost in the average monthly check.

Bottom line Consumers are feeling the pinch, and it’s an especially painful hit to those paying for business costs such as higher wages.
This puts the Federal Reserve, with a mandate to keep inflation moderate and the economy running smoothly, in a jam.

The central bank’s cheap money policies have provided a boost to the economy, especially real estate industries and homeowners. But cooling the economy by making borrowing pricier could chill key economic engines.
Elsewhere

Price jumps in California …
• No. 4 San Diego: 6.5% inflation rate for September, No. 4 among the 23 metros.
• No. 23 San Francisco: 3.7% for August — lowest of the 23.
Elsewhere in the nation …
• No. 2 Atlanta: 6.6% for August.
• No. 2 St. Louis: 6.6% for August.
• No. 5 Tampa: 6.1% for September.
• No. 6 Dallas: 5.9% for September.
• No. 7 Anchorage: 5.7% for August.
• No. 8 Minneapolis: 5.4% for September.
• No. 9 Houston: 5.3% for August.
• No. 10 Seattle: 5.2% for August.
• No. 11 Phoenix: 5.1% for August.
• No. 12 Honolulu: 5% for September.
• No. 13 Philadelphia: 4.6% for August.
• No. 15 Baltimore: 4.5% for August.
• No. 15 Chicago: 4.5% for September.
• No. 15 Denver: 4.5% for September.
• No. 15 Washington: 4.5% for September.
• No. 19 Miami: 4.2% for August.
• No. 20 Boston: 4% for August.
• No. 21 Detroit: 3.9% for August.
• No. 22 New York: 3.8% for September.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Retail sales climbing in spite of pricing as well as supply shortcomings

Americans continued to spend at a solid clip in September even while facing sticker shock in grocery aisles, car lots and restaurants as snarled global supply chains slow the flow of goods.

Retail sales rose a seasonally adjusted 0.7% in September from the month before, the U.S. Commerce Department said Friday.

That was a stronger showing than expected. Yet there are lingering concerns as to how resilient shoppers will be if prices continue to head north and shortages lead to frustration heading into the crucial holiday season.

Consumer spending drives about 70% of all U.S. economic activity and a sustained recovery from a pandemic- induced recession will require their participation.

There is no evidence that Americans are pulling back, however, and spending last month was heavy everywhere, frm clothing, sporting goods and toy stores to car lots.

Some of the increased spending by consumers is the direct result of spiking prices. A gallon of gasoline today costs about $1 more than it did at this time last year so in many cases, Americans aren’t buying more, they’re just paying more.

The U.S. reported this week that the prices consumers pay rose 0.4% in September, and they’re up 5.4% over the past 12 months, matching the fastest pace since 2008. Gasoline, furniture, cars and trips to the grocery store or restaurant have all grown more expensive.

California jobless claims jump while U.S. numbers fall: California’s battered job market has yet to fully heal from its coronavirus- induced afflictions, as sketched out by a federal report released Thursday that shows unemployment claims remain abnormally high.

Workers in California filed 67,200 initial claims for unemployment benefits for the week ending Oct. 9, an increase of 3,200 from the 64,000 claims filed in the week ending Oct. 2, the U.S. Labor Department reported Thursday.

In January 2020 and February 2020, the final two months before state and local government agencies ordered the lockdowns to curb the spread of the deadly bug, unemployment claims averaged 44,800 a week in California.

The 67,200 jobless claims filed last week in California were 50% higher than the average reported in early 2020. The U.S. number of claims fell to its lowest level since the pandemic began, dropping 36,000 to 293,000, the second straight drop.

That’s the smallest number of people applying for benefits since the week of March 14, 2020, when the pandemic intensified, and the first time claims have dipped below 300,000.

The decline in layoffs comes amid an otherwise unusual job market. Hiring has slowed in the past two months, even as companies and other employers have posted a near-record number of open jobs. Businesses are struggling to find workers as about three million people who lost jobs and stopped looking for work since the pandemic have yet to resume their job searches. Economists hoped more people would find work in September as schools reopened, easing child care constraints, and enhanced unemployment aid ended nationwide.

One reason America’s employers are having trouble filling jobs was starkly illustrated in a report Tuesday: Americans are quitting in droves. The Labor Department said that quits jumped to 4.3 million in August, the highest on records dating back to December 2000, and up from 4 million in July. That’s equivalent to nearly 3% of the workforce. Hiring also slowed in August, the report showed, and the number of jobs available fell to 10.4 million, from a record high of 11.1 million the previous month.

The data helps fill in a puzzle that is looming over the job market: Hiring slowed sharply in August and September, even as the number of posted jobs was near record levels. In the past year, open jobs have increased 62%. Yet overall hiring, as measured by Tuesday’s report, has actually declined slightly during that time.

The jump in quits strongly suggests that fear of the delta variant is partly responsible for the shortfall in workers. In addition to driving quits, fear of the disease probably caused plenty of those out of work to not look for, or take, jobs.

As COVID-19 cases surged in August, quits soared in restaurants and hotels from the previous month and rose in other public-facing jobs, such as retail and education. Nearly 900,000 people left jobs at restaurants, bars, and hotels in August, up 21% from July Yet in industries such as manufacturing, construction, and transportation and warehousing, quits barely increased. In professional and business services, which includes fields such as law, engineering, and architecture, where most employees can work from home, quitting was largely flat.

Other factors also likely contributed to the jump in quits. With many employers desperate for workers and wages rising at a healthy pace, workers have a much greater ability to demand higher pay, or go elsewhere to find it. The data from August is probably too early to reflect the impact of vaccine mandates. President Joe Biden’s mandate was not announced until Sept. 9.

Layoffs and quits continue to dog California’s job market. Workers in California filed 67,200 initial claims for unemployment benefits for the week that ended Oct. 9, an increase of 3,200 from the 64,000 claims filed in the week that ended Oct. 2, the U.S. Labor Department reported Thursday.

In January and February 2020, the final two months before state and local government agencies ordered lockdowns to curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus, unemployment claims averaged 44,800 a week in California.

The 67,200 jobless claims filed last week in California were 50% higher than the average reported in early 2020.
The U.S. number of claims fell to its lowest level since the pandemic began, dropping 36,000 to 293,000, the second straight drop.

That’s the smallest number of people applying for benefits since the week of March 14, 2020, when the pandemic intensified, and the first time claims have dipped below 300,000.

The decline in layoffs comes amid an otherwise unusual job market. Hiring has slowed in the past two months, even as companies and other employers have posted a near-record number of open jobs. Businesses are struggling to find workers as about 3 million people who lost jobs and stopped looking for work since the pandemic have yet to resume their job searches. Economists hoped more people would find work in September as schools reopened, easing child care constraints, and enhanced unemployment aid ended nationwide.

The Labor Department said earlier last week that quits jumped to 4.3 million in August, the highest on records dating back to December 2000, and up from 4 million in July.