US Jobless Claims Rise to Two-Month High as Labor Market Cools
Source: Bloomberg
February 1, 2024 at 8:34 AM EST
Updated on February 1, 2024 at 9:01 AM EST
Initial and recurring applications for US unemployment benefits both rose to a two-month high, suggesting some slowdown in the labor market.
Initial claims increased by 9,000 to 224,000 in the week ending Jan. 27, according to Labor Department data released on Thursday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 212,000.
Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving unemployment benefits, rose to 1.9 million in the week ending Jan. 20.
The US labor market has defied economists forecasts over the last year despite elevated interest rates, but there are signs of cooling. Fewer people are quitting their jobs than at the peak of the pandemic recovery and recent high-profile job-cuts announcements from companies including United States Parcel Service Inc. may be early signs that unemployment will pick up in coming months.
Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-01/us-jobless-claims-rise-to-two-month-high-as-labor-market-cools?srnd=premium
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Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims
Initial claims were 224,000 for the week ending 1/27 (+9,000).
Insured unemployment was 1,898,000 for the week ending 1/20 (+70,000).
https://dol.gov/ui/data.pdf
