The disappointing jobs report dealt a brief blow to the recent rally. The report showed a net gain of just 39,000 jobs in the United States, a sharp decline from the 172,000 jobs created in October, and well below the 144,000 jobs forecasted. The private sector only added 50,000 jobs in November, and unemployment rose to 9.8%.

The jobs report took Wall Street by surprise, but it shouldn’t have, and neither should the fact that the notion of a “jobless recovery” is a myth.

Consider this: The United States needs 200,000-250,000 new jobs a month to break even with growth in the labor force. It needs half a million new jobs a month for seven years to re-hire all of the people laid off and wanting to work or wanting to work more hours. And it needs perhaps half a million new jobs a month for a decade to absorb all the people who have exited the workforce in the past three years.

How to Profit From the Economic Reality

1. Short Homebuilders

The pending home sales data announced Thursday showed a 10.4% increase from September to October. However, this is down 25% from the previous October, a month admittedly fueled by the home buyer tax credit. Taking a longer view, though, pending home sales would have to grow 10% per annum until mid-2016 to hit levels reached in 2005.

2. Buy Retailers That Benefit From the ‘New Frugal’

The retail jobs numbers were especially disappointing, with a loss 28,000 jobs. A recovery is the job market has been repeatedly cited as a driving force behind improved consumer sentiment and spending.

Retailers had a good Black Friday (relative to some really lousy ones in previous years), but shoppers have a New Frugal mindset, i.e., they are spending a bit more money, but on fewer quality items as opposed to a larger number of cheaper items. Visa Inc. (NYSE: V)? and MasterCard Incorporated (NYSE: MA) data show increased revenues but flat-to-down transactions.

Here’s a fun fact for you: Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) accounted for 55% of the boost to overall retail sales in Q2, according to David Berman, president of Durban Capital. If that isn’t evidence of the New Frugal, I don’t know what is.

When looking to buy retail stocks, go for consumer favorites like AAPL or higher-end retailers like Nordstrom, Inc. (NYSE: JWN).

3. Short Stimulus Losers

The U.S. government is not debating more stimulus; it is debating the most politically feasible way to withdraw stimulus — here and in virtually every European country other than Poland. The governments of developed nations will withdraw at least $700 billion and perhaps as much as $1.2 trillion in spending, all on borrowed money, in the next 12-18 months, and will continue to shrink expenditures.

Outside of Uncle Sam, the states are collectively running a $144 billion deficit. This will force them to raise taxes, reduce spending and cut costs, which I estimate will cost at least half a million state and local jobs.

One loser from this stimulus withdrawal (and a shorting candidate) is Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ: ITRI), which produces electricity, gas, water and heat meters.

4. Buy Put Options on Health Care ETFs

The one steady area of employment growth, health care, is going to take a hit next year as more people drop their insurance due to double-digit rate increases. As Medicare and Medicaid payments are pared back, this will affect private-sector reimbursement, and political pressure from red and blue politicians alike will also hurt the sector.

Take a look at put options on the Pharmaceutical HOLDRs ETF (NYSE: PPH).

5. Go Long Precious Metals

The Fed’s policy of aggressively printing money means rising gold and silver prices. The best way to trade this trend is to buy call options on the ETFs that represent these metals, the SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE: GLD) and the SPDR Silver Trust (NYSE: SLV).

6. Get Ready to Short the Market

Be ready to exit or short the major indices when the double-dip recession we’re in catches up with corporate profits, which should be no later than Q3 2011.