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Jobless Claims Fall More Than Expected After U.S. Holidays
Jobless Claims Fall More Than Expected After U.S. Holidays
by Sho Chandra
January 28, 2016 — 8:31 AM ESTUpdated on January 28, 2016 — 9:02 AM EST
Applications for unemployment benefits in the U.S. declined last week from a six-month high, indicating firings remain low following the volatility typically associated with post-holiday staff adjustments.
Jobless claims fell by 16,000 to 278,000 in the week ended Jan. 23, from 294,000 in the prior period, a report from the Labor Department showed on Thursday in Washington. The median forecast of 51 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for 281,000. The number of those continuing to receive benefits climbed.
While a shorter filing period due to the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday and bad weather in some parts of the U.S. probably influenced the weekly data, the recent trend shows employers are holding on to workers to meet demand. Claims near four-decade lows are consistent with labor market improvement that the Federal Reserve cited on Wednesday after its meeting.
“The holiday and bad weather may have complicated things,” said David Sloan, a senior economist at 4Cast Inc. in New York. “There’s no sign anything has changed dramatically. I don’t think companies are rushing to lay off workers.”
by Sho Chandra
January 28, 2016 — 8:31 AM ESTUpdated on January 28, 2016 — 9:02 AM EST
Applications for unemployment benefits in the U.S. declined last week from a six-month high, indicating firings remain low following the volatility typically associated with post-holiday staff adjustments.
Jobless claims fell by 16,000 to 278,000 in the week ended Jan. 23, from 294,000 in the prior period, a report from the Labor Department showed on Thursday in Washington. The median forecast of 51 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for 281,000. The number of those continuing to receive benefits climbed.
While a shorter filing period due to the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday and bad weather in some parts of the U.S. probably influenced the weekly data, the recent trend shows employers are holding on to workers to meet demand. Claims near four-decade lows are consistent with labor market improvement that the Federal Reserve cited on Wednesday after its meeting.
“The holiday and bad weather may have complicated things,” said David Sloan, a senior economist at 4Cast Inc. in New York. “There’s no sign anything has changed dramatically. I don’t think companies are rushing to lay off workers.”
