More Americans than projected filed applications for unemployment benefits last week, showing uneven progress in the labour market.
Jobless claims increased by 28,000 to 326,000 in the week ended May 17, after 298,000 filings a week earlier that were higher than initially reported, U.S. Labor Department figures showed today in Washington. The median forecast of 50 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a rise to 310,000. Continuing claims fell to the lowest since December 2007.
Economists’ estimates in the Bloomberg survey ranged from claims of 299,000 to 325,000. The department revised the previous week’s figure from an initially reported 297,000.
Last week included the 12th of the month, which coincides with the period when the department surveys employers to calculate monthly payroll data. The four-week average was 312,000 during the comparable survey week in April.
The number of people continuing to receive jobless benefits dropped by 13,000 to 2.65 million in the week ended May 10.
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