Initial unemployment claims rose modestly after reaching a 50-year low as employers continue to show reluctance in reducing their workforces in the current competitive labor market.
The Labor Department released its latest weekly jobless claims report Thursday morning and here were the main metrics from the print compared to consensus estimates compiled by Bloomberg:
- Initial jobless claims, week ended March 26: 202,000 versus 196,000 expected, and a revised 188,000 during prior week
- Continuing claims, week ended March 19: 1.31 million versus 1.340 million expected, and a revised 1.34 million during prior week
Weekly unemployment claims edged higher for the first time in three weeks but rose only marginally from multi-decade lows set just last week. At 188,000, last week’s tally for new jobless claims marked the lowest level since September 1969. And continuing claims, which track the total number of individuals claiming ongoing benefits on regular state programs, have also fallen precipitously and reached just more than 1.3 million in mid-March. The last time it reached that level was in December 1969.
While the weekly jobless claims data have been volatile, the reports over the past several months have shown a clear decrease in the number of individuals newly rendered out of work. While the quits rate has been elevated – and last rose by 0.1 percentage points to reach 2.9% in February – movement between jobs has also been high, with workers largely confident in their abilities to find new roles after leaving their previous positions.
However, the relatively low numbers of new jobless claims belies the strain still facing employers, who have still largely struggled to find enough labor to meet demand. However, some of this deficit has started to be filled, especially as jobs have grown for 14 consecutive months, based on the Labor Department’s monthly non-farm payrolls data. Job growth is expected to extend that streak in March in the forthcoming monthly jobs report due out Friday.
To read the full report from Emily McCormick at Yahoo Finance, click here.