US Unemployment Claims Rose to 4 Month High

The number of Americans filing applications for jobless benefits rose to more than a four-month high last week, but the underlying trend remained consistent with a tightening labor market.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 3,000 to a seasonally adjusted 224,000 for the week ended Nov. 17, the highest level since the end of June, the Labor Department said on Wednesday.

Data for the prior week was revised to show 5,000 more applications received than previously reported.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims slipping to 215,000 in the latest week.

The Labor Department said no states were estimated last week. It said claims for North Carolina and Florida continued to be affected by Hurricanes Florence and Michael, respectively.

The four-week moving average of initial claims, considered a better measure of labor market trends as it irons out week-to-week volatility, rose 2,000 to 218,500 last week.

via CNBC

Content is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc. or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. If you would like to reproduce or redistribute any of the content found on MarketPulse, an award winning forex, commodities and global indices analysis and news site service produced by OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc., please access the RSS feed or contact us at info@marketpulse.com. Visit https://www.marketpulse.com/ to find out more about the beat of the global markets. © 2023 OANDA Business Information & Services Inc.