The latest report from the Labor Department, published on Thursday, reveals a significant rise in the initial claims for unemployment benefits in the United States for the week ending October 5th. The initial jobless claims increased to 258,000, marking a surge of 33,000 from the prior week's stable figure of 225,000. This jump surpassed economists' projections, which had anticipated a slight increase to 230,000.
This larger-than-forecasted rise positions the jobless claims at their highest point since a similar level was recorded for the week ending August 5th, 2023. Additionally, the department highlighted that the four-week moving average, known for its reduced volatility, ascended to 231,000, signaling an uptick of 6,750 from the prior week's steady average of 224,250.
In terms of ongoing unemployment assistance, the number of continuing claims rose by 42,000, reaching 1.861 million for the week ending September 28th. The four-week moving average of continuing claims experienced a slight increase as well, moving up to 1,832,000 from the preceding week's adjusted average of 1,827,500.
Just the previous Friday, another significant report from the Labor Department indicated a much larger than anticipated growth in U.S. employment for September. Non-farm payroll employment saw an increase of 254,000 jobs during the month, a leap from the upwardly revised figure of 159,000 jobs in August. Economists had predicted a 140,000 job rise, in contrast to the initially reported addition of 142,000 jobs for the prior month.
Moreover, the report detailed a slight decline in the unemployment rate, which decreased to 4.1 percent in September from August's rate of 4.2 percent, contrary to economists' expectations that it would hold steady.
