DJ DATA SNAP: US Jobless Claims +51K To 454K In Jan 22 WeekLast update: 1/27/2011 8:30:00 AM By Jamila Trindle and Luca Di Leo
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly surged last week, but the data was probably distorted by bad weather. Initial jobless claims rose 51,000 to 454,000 in the week ended Jan. 22, the Labor Department said Thursday in its weekly report. That was the highest level since October 2010. The previous week's figures were revised to 403,000 from 404,000. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had expected claims would rise by just 1,000 to 405,000. A Labor Department analyst said seasonal factors, particularly bad weather, likely distorted the latest numbers. Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina all reported a higher than expected increase in claims because of snow, he said. "I'm fairly certain the data was distorted," the analyst said. Snow can lead to higher jobless claims because schools are closed, delivery trucks can't run and construction stalls. Despite recent swings up and down, claims have been on a slow downward trend since around the middle of 2010. The four-week average of new claims, considered a more reliable indicator because it smoothes out volatile data, rose 15,750 in the week ending Jan. 22 to 428,750. The U.S. labor market is gradually improving as the 18-month-old recovery gains momentum, but it will take a long time to make up for all the jobs lost during the severe 2007-2009 recession. Federal Reserve officials decided Wednesday to continue buying government bonds to boost the recovery because even though the economy is improving, it's still not strong enough to significantly reduce the unemployment rate, which stood at 9.4% in December. At the same time, the central bank isn't worried by inflation despite the recent surge in international commodity prices. The Labor Department said in Thursday's report that the number of continuing claims -- those drawn by workers for more than a week -- rose to 3,991,000 in the week ended Jan. 15. That was an increase of 94,000 over the previous week. Continuing claims are reported with a one-week lag. The unemployment rate for workers with unemployment insurance was 3.2% in the week ending Jan. 15, an increase of 0.1 percentage point from the prior week. The state-by-state breakdown of new claims, which is also reported with a one-week lag, showed that Florida had the largest increase in claims, 6,646, due to layoffs in construction, trade and the service industry. The largest drop in claims the week ending Jan. 15 was in New York, falling 28,714, due to fewer layoffs in construction, service and transportation. The Labor Department report on jobless claims can be accessed at: dol.gov -By Luca Di Leo, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6682; luca.dileo@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones NewswiresJanuary 27, 2011 08:30 ET (13:30 GMT) |
