Associated Press | The Labor Department reported Thursday that first-time requests for jobless benefits rose by 24,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 484,000, the highest level since late February. Economists were predicting claims would fall. It marked the second week that claims took an unexpected leap. In the prior week, claims rose by 18,000 to 460,000.
A government analyst, however, cautioned against reading too much into
both weeks’ figures, saying they were clouded by seasonal adjustment
difficulties related to the Easter holiday, which falls on different
weeks each year.
Even with the increases over the last two weeks, the trend in claims
have been slowly drifting downward. Fewer people overall have been
seeking unemployment insurance as the job market recovers.
For instance, for the same week a year ago, first-time claims totaled
609,000, compared with the current 484,000. Applications for jobless
claims peaked during the recession at 651,000 in late March 2009.
The four-week moving average of claims, which smooths out weekly
volatility, also moved up. They grew by 7,500 to 457,750 last week, the
highest since mid-March.
The number of people continuing to draw unemployment benefits moved higher. They rose to 4.64 million, from 4.57 million.
That figure lags the initial claims by one week. It doesn’t include
millions of people who have used up the regular 26 weeks of benefits
typically provided by states, and are receiving extended benefits for
up to 73 additional weeks, paid for by the federal government.
Approximately 5.97 million people were receiving extended benefits in the week ended March 27, the latest data available.
On Capitol Hill, a bill restoring jobless benefits to people struggling
to find work is back on track in the Senate. The $18 billion measure
could pass Thursday and prevent even more people whose 26 weeks of
state-paid benefits have run out from losing an average of $335 a week
in federally funded benefits.
With the economy on the mend from the worst recession since the 1930s, employers are starting to add to their payrolls again.
Employers in March added 162,000 jobs, the most in three years. But the
pace of the economic recovery and job creation won’t be robust enough
to quickly drive down the unemployment rate. It’s been stuck at 9.7
percent for three months, close to its highest levels since the 1980s.
And, competition for the jobs that do become available is fierce.
Hey lefties- how is that hope and change working for you?
“Unexpectedly”? These reporters must have teeny tiny short term memories. The unemployment rate has been climbing steadily for more than a year. We get little bumps now and then – like census hiring – but the current administration’s policies are making businesses wary of hiring.
Not “surprising” to anyone who looks at the underlying data.
Houshold personal income fell and is staying flat. Households are in debt to their eyeballs. They are brake and not spending. No “consumer” economy without consumers.
Exports? LOL! Only thing Us has exported for years is (a) its jobs and (b) dodgy debts called CDOs and SIVs
It is only “surprising” to those who think Wall St is the same thing as the real world.
Well it looks like Obama’s and the Democrats trillion dollar “stimulus” is doing a great job!!! And don’t blame easter, the market knows when easter is and they anticipated a 30k drop in claims and instead we got 24,000 more people filing claims up to 484,000 new claims last week.
And now the Dems want to pass a financial bill that will continue wall street and business bailouts forever.
Please, no more government “help”.
But our messiah said months ago that his depression was over. So this can’t bne true.
HELLO !! All you business whiz-kids, March is the end of the 1st quarter, of course there was a jump in claims. After 3 years of wondering and waiting the ax fell on me at 3/31.
@ MPW – Exactly – you hit the nail on the head – 3/31/2009 for me. Saw it coming from a mile away. I do see an upswing in response to applications within the past couple weeks.