Jobless claims largest in 26 years
WASHINGTON – The government says new claims for unemployment benefits reached their highest level in 26 years last week, as companies cut workers at a rapid pace.
The Labor Department said Thursday that initial applications for jobless benefits rose to a seasonally adjusted 573,000, from an upwardly revised figure of 515,000 in the previous week. That was far more than the 525,000 claims Wall Street economists expected.
A Labor Department analyst says the jump is partly due to a rebound in claims from the Thanksgiving holiday week when government offices were open for fewer days.
Still, the four-week average, which smooths out fluctuations, was a seasonally-adjusted 540,500, the highest since December 1982, when the economy was emerging from a steep recession.
0 responses so far ↓
There are no comments yet...Kick things off by filling out the form below.