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Numbers seeking jobless aid increase
Photo
Retired U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Thomas Gipson of Atlanta, right, has his resume looked over by Ralph Brown, a management and program analyst with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, during a job fair for veterans at VFW Post 2681in Marietta, Ga. The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits rose 68,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 368,000, the largest increase in more than a year.
Associated Press
WASHINGTON
The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits rose 68,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 368,000, the largest increase in more than a year.
The surge in first-time applications could be a troubling sign if it lasts. But it likely reflects the difficulty adjusting for delays after the Thanksgiving holiday.
The Labor Department said Thursday that the less- volatile four-week average rose 6,000 to 328,750. That is close to pre-recession levels and generally a positive sign for job gains.
Applications had tumbled in recent weeks to nearly six-year lows, partly because of a late Thanksgiving holiday that may have distorted the government’s seasonal adjustments. Economists believe this week’s jump in claims was a dose of payback for those declines.
Applications for unemployment aid are a proxy for layoffs. A steady decline over the past year suggests that fewer Americans have lost their jobs. Economists will track the next few weeks closely to see if that trend is reversing or if the surge is a temporary blip caused by seasonal adjustments.
The recent drop in layoffs has coincided with a pickup in hiring. The economy has added an average of 204,000 jobs a month from August through November, up from an average of 146,000 in May through July.
Employers added 203,000 jobs last month, and the unemployment rate dropped to a five-year low of 7 percent, the government said Friday. Four-straight months of robust hiring have raised hopes that 2014 will be the year the economy returns to normal. As more Americans draw a paycheck, incomes and consumer spending generally increase. About 70 percent of economic activity comes from consumer spending.
However, the unemployment rate remains above the historic averages of 5 percent to 6 percent that are associated with strong job markets.