DATA SNAP: US Jobless Claims +12K To 500K In August 14 Week
Business news from Dow Jones
DATA SNAP: US Jobless Claims +12K To 500K In August 14 Week
WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- The number of U.S. workers making new claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week to the highest level in nine months, a distressing sign for an already weak labor market.
Initial unemployment claims rose by 12,000 to 500,000 in the week ended Aug. 14, the Labor Department said in its weekly report Thursday. It was the highest level since Nov. 14, when claims stood at 509,000.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had predicted filings would decline by 4,000.
The four-week moving average, which aims to smooth volatility in the data, rose by 8,000 to 482,500. It was the highest level since Dec. 2009. New claims for the previous week, ending Aug. 7, were revised up, to 488,000 from the originally reported 484,000.
The rise in claims is particularly troubling because analysts have been expecting an improvement for some time. They said recent data was likely distorted by seasonal adjustment factors tied to factory shutdowns by carmakers and the hiring and firing of temporary workers for the 2010 Census.
The level of new claims has fallen steadily from a high of 651,000 in March 2009 to a low of 439,000 in early February. Since then, it's been creeping back up and the latest rise to 500,000 is particularly worrying.
U.S. labor conditions already looked poor. The economy lost 131,000 jobs in July, and the unemployment rate stayed at a high 9.5%. After its policy-setting meeting last week, the Federal Reserve noted that the recovery in the jobs market had slowed. The central bank decided to prevent its balance shrink from shriking to counter the slowdown in the economy.
In the Labor Department's claims report Thursday, the number of continuing claims - those drawn by workers for more than one week in the week ended Aug. 7 - fell by 13,000 to 4,478,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 4,491,000. The previous estimate was 4,452,000. Continuing claims are reported with a one-week lag.
The unemployment rate for workers with unemployment insurance for the week ended Aug. 7 was 3.5%, unchanged from the prior week.
The report has a state-by-state breakdown of new claims for the week ended Aug. 7, when there was another troubling increase.
The largest increase in claims occurred in California, which saw a rise of 4,393 due to layoffs in the service industry. The largest decrease in claims took place in Wisconsin, which saw a fall of 1,873. No details were provided for Wisconsin.
The Labor Department report on jobless claims can be accessed at: http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/eta/ui/current.htm
-By Luca Di Leo, Dow Jones Newswires; 202 862 6682; luca.dileo@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
08-19-10 0845ET
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Business news from Dow Jones
DATA SNAP: US Jobless Claims +12K To 500K In August 14 Week
WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- The number of U.S. workers making new
claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week to the highest
level in nine months, a distressing sign for an already weak labor
market.
Initial unemployment claims rose by 12,000 to 500,000
in the week ended Aug. 14, the Labor Department said in its weekly
report Thursday. It was the highest level since Nov. 14, when claims
stood at 509,000.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had predicted filings would decline by 4,000.
The four-week moving average, which aims to smooth volatility in the
data, rose by 8,000 to 482,500. It was the highest level since Dec.
2009. New claims for the previous week, ending Aug. 7, were revised up,
to 488,000 from the originally reported 484,000.
The rise in
claims is particularly troubling because analysts have been expecting an
improvement for some time. They said recent data was likely distorted
by seasonal adjustment factors tied to factory shutdowns by carmakers
and the hiring and firing of temporary workers for the 2010 Census.
The level of new claims has fallen steadily from a high of 651,000 in
March 2009 to a low of 439,000 in early February. Since then, it's been
creeping back up and the latest rise to 500,000 is particularly
worrying.
U.S. labor conditions already looked poor. The
economy lost 131,000 jobs in July, and the unemployment rate stayed at a
high 9.5%. After its policy-setting meeting last week, the Federal
Reserve noted that the recovery in the jobs market had slowed. The
central bank decided to prevent its balance shrink from shriking to
counter the slowdown in the economy.
In the Labor Department's
claims report Thursday, the number of continuing claims - those drawn by
workers for more than one week in the week ended Aug. 7 - fell by
13,000 to 4,478,000 from the preceding week's revised level of
4,491,000. The previous estimate was 4,452,000. Continuing claims are
reported with a one-week lag.
The unemployment rate for workers
with unemployment insurance for the week ended Aug. 7 was 3.5%,
unchanged from the prior week.
The report has a state-by-state breakdown of new claims for the week ended Aug. 7, when there was another troubling increase.
The largest increase in claims occurred in California, which saw a rise
of 4,393 due to layoffs in the service industry. The largest decrease
in claims took place in Wisconsin, which saw a fall of 1,873. No details
were provided for Wisconsin.
The Labor Department report on jobless claims can be accessed at: http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/eta/ui/current.htm
-By Luca Di Leo, Dow Jones Newswires; 202 862 6682; luca.dileo@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
08-19-10 0845ET