Washington: Number of Americans filing new claims unemployment benefits fell unexpectedly last week, indicating job growth February is likely to be solid.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell by 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 201,000 for the week ending Feb. 17. Labour Department Said on Thursday. economists A Reuters poll had estimated 218,000 claims for the latest week.
Despite high-profile layoffs at the beginning of the year, claims are hovering at historically low levels.
Difficulties finding workers during and after the COVID-19 pandemic have generally made employers reluctant to reduce headcount. Workers’ productivity has also increased, while the economy continues to expand despite massive increases in interest rates by the Federal Reserve.
Minutes of the U.S. central bank’s Jan. 30-31 meeting published Wednesday showed that officials continued to view the labor market as “tight,” but many said recent job gains had been concentrated in a few sectors. were, in their view, at risk of a deterioration in the employment outlook.”
Starting March 2022, the Fed has raised its policy rate by 525 basis points to the current 5.25%-5.50% range.
The claims data covers the period during which the government surveyed businesses for the nonfarm payrolls component of the February employment report. The economy added 353,000 jobs in January.
The claims report showed that the number of people receiving benefits after the initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, fell by 27,000 to 1.862 million during the week ended Feb. 10.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell by 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 201,000 for the week ending Feb. 17. Labour Department Said on Thursday. economists A Reuters poll had estimated 218,000 claims for the latest week.
Despite high-profile layoffs at the beginning of the year, claims are hovering at historically low levels.
Difficulties finding workers during and after the COVID-19 pandemic have generally made employers reluctant to reduce headcount. Workers’ productivity has also increased, while the economy continues to expand despite massive increases in interest rates by the Federal Reserve.
Minutes of the U.S. central bank’s Jan. 30-31 meeting published Wednesday showed that officials continued to view the labor market as “tight,” but many said recent job gains had been concentrated in a few sectors. were, in their view, at risk of a deterioration in the employment outlook.”
Starting March 2022, the Fed has raised its policy rate by 525 basis points to the current 5.25%-5.50% range.
The claims data covers the period during which the government surveyed businesses for the nonfarm payrolls component of the February employment report. The economy added 353,000 jobs in January.
The claims report showed that the number of people receiving benefits after the initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, fell by 27,000 to 1.862 million during the week ended Feb. 10.
