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U.S. jobless claims jump
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January 4, 2001: 11:04 a.m. ET
New unemployment claims mark highest rise in over 2 years
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits jumped for the third consecutive week last week to the highest level in about 2-1/2 years, the U.S. government reported Thursday.
At 375,000, new claims in the week ended Dec. 30 were up 16,000 from a revised 359,000 the prior week. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had expected claims of about 350,000.
This was the highest since 384,000 in the July 4, 1998, week.
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 STATE JOBLESS CLAIMS
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The largest increases in initial claims for the week ended Dec. 23, the week prior to the new data, were in Missouri (9,414) and Kentucky (8,206); the biggest declines in initial claims occured in Georgia (4,232) and Indiana (3,133).
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The four-week moving average of claims, thought to give a more accurate picture of jobless trends, rose to 352,250 from a revised 347,000, the Labor Department said in its report.
Continued claims were reported at 2,520,000 for the week ended Dec. 23, the latest data available, up from a revised 2,345,000 in the prior period.
The overall high level of jobless claims could reinforce expectations of slight weakness in the December employment report, scheduled for release Friday. In a Reuters poll, economists predicted a 102,000 rise in new jobs, up from growth of only 94,000 in November.
The monthly unemployment report gives a broad look at labor-market conditions throughout the economy. The unemployment rate is forecast to rise to 4.1 percent, marginally above the 4 percent reported in November.
-- from staff and wire reports. 
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