U.S. Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Rise on Holiday Distortions
Applications for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week to an almost nine-month high, showing fluctuation in the filings that typically occurs around the year-end holidays.
Jobless claims climbed by 10,000 to 379,000 in the period ended Dec. 14, the most since the end of March, Labor Department data showed today in Washington. The median forecast of 48 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a decrease to 336,000. It’s best to focus on the four-week average during the holiday season to determine the underlying trend, a government spokesman said as the figures were released.
Unemployment that fell last month to a five-year low and progress in hiring helped prompt Federal Reserve policy makers to reduce their $85 billion in monthly bond buying yesterday at the conclusion of a two-day meeting. Gains in payrolls are also helping lift consumer confidence, brightening the prospects for retailers during the holiday-shopping period.
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A job seekers speaks to a representative at the annual Maximum Connections job fair in Portland, Oregon.
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“Claims at this time of year are very volatile, so we don’t want to put too much stock in each week’s fluctuations,” said Ryan Sweet, a senior economist at Moody’s Analytics Inc. in West Chester, Pennsylvania, and the best claims forecaster over the past two years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “Layoffs are low, which is very encouraging.”
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