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Pastimes : Layoff Totals for US Companies -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: jjetstream who wrote (1089)	7/8/2001 10:26:26 PM
From: jjetstream	Respond to of 8051

U.S. continued jobless claims highest since 1992 (UPDATE: adds report details, payrolls forecast) WASHINGTON, July 5 (Reuters) - The number of Americans signing up for initial jobless benefits rose last week, the government said on Thursday, while the number of people remaining on the unemployment rolls topped 3 million for the first time in 8-1/2 years. Initial claims for state unemployment insurance benefits, which give an early reading on the resilience of the labor market, rose to 399,000 in the week ended June 30 from a revised 392,000 in the prior week, the Labor Department said. The increase was in line with Wall Street expectations. The department originally reported new claims in the June 23 week at 388,000. The once drum-tight U.S. labor market continues to loosen as the number of people claiming more than a week of benefits rose 52,000 to 3.03 million in the June 23 week, the latest for which figures are available, from 2.98 million in the prior week. The last time so-called continued claims were higher was the week of November 7, 1992, when they stood at 3.04 million. The four-week moving average of initial claims, viewed as a more accurate indicator of labor market conditions than the weekly figure, fell for the third consecutive week to 407,500 in the week ended June 30 from 417,000 a week earlier. On Friday, the department issues its report on June employment, a key factor in the Federal Reserve's calculations as it weighs its next move on interest rates. The U.S. central bank has cut rates six times this year and indicated it was prepared to do more should the economy deteriorate further. Most recently, the Fed sliced the federal funds rate, a benchmark for short-term interest rates throughout the economy, by a quarter-percentage point to 3.75 percent. Economists surveyed by Reuters forecast the unemployment rate in June rose to 4.6 percent compared to 4.4 percent in May. They expect Friday's report to show a decline, on average, of 44,000 nonfarm jobs in June. In the week ended June 23 -- the latest week for which state-by-state figures are available -- the department said six states reported decreases in claims exceeding 1,000, led by Missouri with 2,819 fewer applications. That state reported fewer layoffs in the transportation, communications and public utilities industries. In the same week, five states reported a increase in claims of 1,000 or more with led by New Jersey with 5,791 additional claims. That state reported more layoffs in public administration, communications, transportation, public utilities, trade, service and other unspecified manufacturing industries.