blog:New Jobless Claims Drop to 550K
The number of newly laid-off workers seeking unemployment benefits fell last week, the government said Thursday, a sign that the job market is making gradual improvement.
Job losses are likely to slow in coming months, economists said, a trend that could be reflected in the government’s July unemployment report to be released Friday. “We believe the lower claims figures are an important economic development and confirmation that the economy is turning the corner,” Joseph LaVorgna, chief U.S. economist at Deutsche Bank, wrote in a note to clients. First-time claims for jobless benefits dropped to a seasonally adjusted 550,000 for the week ending Aug. 1, down from an upwardly revised figure of 588,000 in the previous week, the Labor Department said.
That was much lower than analysts’ estimates of 580,000, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters. And the four-week average of claims, which smooths out fluctuations, dropped to 555,250, its lowest point since late January.
Among the states, Ohio had the biggest increase in claims, with 891, followed by Oklahoma, Mississippi, Louisiana and Alaska. State data lags behind initial claims data by one week. North Carolina had the largest drop in claims, with 9,809, which it said was due to fewer layoffs in the textile, furniture, rubber and plastics, and industrial machinery industries. Michigan, Florida, Georgia and Alabama had the next-largest declines.
Tags: Jobless