|
U.S. jobless claims higher
|
 |
May 24, 2001: 9:00 a.m. ET
Weekly claims pass forecasts; continuing claims highest since 1994
|
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - The number of new U.S. jobless claims rose last week, the government reported Thursday, a sign of continued weakness in the labor market.
New claims for state unemployment benefits rose to 407,000 in the week ended May 19 from a revised 392,000 the prior week, the Labor Department reported.
The prior week's reading was the lowest in about a month and came after claims had climbed to the highest level in five years in prior weeks.
Analysts surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast new claims of 390,000 for last week.
Click here for the latest on layoffs
The four-week moving average of new claims, considered a better gauge of jobless trends, slipped to 403,000 from the previous week's revised 404,250.
Economists watch the four-week moving average more closely because it smoothes out fluctuations in the weekly data.
Continued claims -- those workers who already have claimed at least a week of benefits – rose to about 2.77 million in the week ended May 12, the latest data available, from a revised 2.68 million the previous week. It was the highest level since June 11, 1994, when continued claims reached 2.78 million. 
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
.
