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U.S. Jobless Claims Fall

U.S. Jobless Claims Fall

Washington (AFP) – New claims for U.S. unemployment insurance benefits fell last week to 300,000, pulling the trend line to its lowest level in nearly seven years, the Labor Department said Thursday.

New claims, a sign of the pace of layoffs, fell by 27,000 in the week to May 24. The four-week moving average fell to 311,500, the lowest since August 11, 2007.

The figures indicated a modest but continuing tightening in labor markets — fewer layoffs and strengthening monthly numbers for job creation.

The U.S. economy added 288,000 jobs in April, the strongest job growth in more than two years.

The unemployment rate fell to 6.3 percent from 6.7 percent in March. That was the lowest level in nearly six years, though in part it reflected a climb in dropouts from the labor force.

AFP/Saul Loeb

U.S. Jobless Claims Fall After Easter-Period Surge

U.S. Jobless Claims Fall After Easter-Period Surge

Washington (AFP) – New claims for U.S. unemployment insurance benefits fell last week following a short-lived surge, bringing them back in line with the past year’s level, official data showed Thursday.

Initial jobless claims, a sign of the pace of layoffs, totaled 319,000 in the week ending May 3, compared with 345,000 the prior week, the Labor Department said.

The four-week moving average rose by 4,500 to 324,750, lower than the 340,000 level from a year ago but generally within the range of the past 12 months.

“The gyrations in claims in recent weeks always seemed likely to be due to Easter seasonal adjustment problems, and this report suggests that normal service is now being restored,” said Ian Shepherdson of Pantheon Macroeconomics.

‘We think the underlying trend in claims is in the mid-320s,” he said.

AFP Photo/Justin Sullivan

U.S. Jobless Claims Rise But Still On Improvement Track

U.S. Jobless Claims Rise But Still On Improvement Track

Washington (AFP) – New claims for U.S. unemployment insurance benefits rose last week but remained on a downward trend as the job market slowly improves, government data released Thursday showed.

Initial jobless claims, a sign of the pace of layoffs, totaled 344,000 in the week ending April 26, an increase of 14,000 from the prior week’s slightly revised 330,000 reading, the Labor Department said.

Claims last week were at their highest level since late February.

Most analysts expected claims to fall to 315,000. But they cautioned that weekly volatility was particularly difficult to assess because of the Easter holiday and school break periods.

The four-week moving claims average, which helps to smooth out volatility, rose by 3,000 to 320,000.

A year ago the four-week average was at 344,000.

The claims data came ahead of Friday’s April jobs report. The Labor Department is expected to announce 210,000 jobs were added to the economy, after 192,000 in March, and the unemployment rate slipped to 6.6 percent from 6.7 percent.

“This report screams Easter seasonal adjustments, so we are inclined to ignore it,” said Ian Shepherdson of Pantheon Macroeconomics.

“We think the underlying trend is falling, but only slowly, and we’d be happy to see the four-week moving average trending in the low 320s by the middle of June.”

©afp.com / Joshua Lott

U.S. Jobless Claims Tick A Bit Higher

U.S. Jobless Claims Tick A Bit Higher

Washington (AFP) – New claims for U.S. unemployment insurance benefits edged higher last week but still remained close to a seven-year low, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Americans filed 304,000 initial jobless claims in the week ending April 12, an increase of 2,000 from the previous week’s revised level.

Last week’s increase was much smaller than expected, with most analysts estimating 312,000 claims lodged.

Initial claims, an indicator of the pace of layoffs, have been slowly trending lower as the economy recovers from recession. The four-week moving average fell last week by 4,750 to 312,000, the lowest level since early October 2007.

The U.S. unemployment rate was 6.7 percent in March amid moderate job growth over the first three months of the year.

“The low level of initial claims in the week that covers the payroll survey period flags a 200,000-plus payrolls gain in April,” said Sal Guatieri, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets.

The Labor Department reports April job creation and unemployment data on May 2.

©afp.com / Chip Somodevilla