DATA SNAP:US Jobless Claims +25K To 429K Last Wk; Survey -8KLast update: 4/28/2011 8:30:00 AM
By Jeffrey Sparshott and Andrew Ackerman
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--The number of idled U.S. workers filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly jumped last week, the latest sign that the labor market remains weak. Initial jobless claims increased by 25,000 to a seasonally adjusted 429,000 in the week ended April 23, the Labor Department said Thursday in its weekly report. The prior week's figure was revised to 404,000 from an originally reported 403,000. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast claims would fall by 8,000 in the latest week. The four-week moving average of new claims, considered a more reliable indicator because it smoothes out volatile weekly data, rose by 9,250 to 408,500 in the week ending April 23. That is the first time the average has risen above 400,000 since the week ending Feb. 19. Economists generally estimate that the economy is adding more jobs than it is shedding once the weekly claims figure falls below 400,000. So far this year, new claims have hovered around that number. The unemployment rate, while down markedly from last year, remained elevated at 8.8% in March. A weak jobs market undermines consumer confidence and consumer spending--a main driver of the U.S. economy. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke Wednesday said recent improvement in the labor market is encouraging and appears sustainable, though the pace of job creation "is still quite slow and we are digging ourselves out of a very, very deep hole." Total non-farm employment last month was about 7.26 million less than the January 2008 peak, according to Labor Department data. "So clearly, the fact that we are moving in the right direction even though that's encouraging doesn't mean that the labor market is in good shape," Bernanke added. The Labor Department said in Thursday's report that the number of continuing claims--those drawn by workers for more than a week--fell by 68,000 to 3,641,000 in the week ended April 16. Continuing claims are reported with a one-week lag. The unemployment rate for workers with unemployment insurance was 2.9% in the week ending April 16, compared to 3.0% a week earlier. The state-by-state breakdown of new claims, which is also reported with a one-week lag, showed California with 18,017 fewer jobless claims due to a drop in layoffs in the service industry, the largest decrease among all states. Florida had the biggest increase, 2,753, due to layoffs in the construction, trade and service industries, as well as adjustments related to the new fiscal quarter. The Labor Department report on jobless claims can be accessed at: dol.gov -By Jeffrey Sparshott and Andrew Ackerman; Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-9291; jeffrey.sparshott@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones NewswiresApril 28, 2011 08:30 ET (12:30 GMT) |
