A report released by the Labor Department on Thursday showed a bigger than expected increase in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended December 16th.
The report said initial jobless claims climbed to 245,000, an increase of 20,000 from the previous week’s unrevised level of 225,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to rise to 234,000.
The less volatile four-week moving average also rose to 236,000, an increase of 1,250 from the previous week’s unrevised average of 234,750.
The Labor Department said claims taking procedures continue to be disrupted in the Virgin Islands, while the claims taking process in Puerto Rico has still not returned to normal.
The report said continuing claims, a reading on the number of people receiving ongoing unemployment assistance, increased by 43,000 to 1.932 million in the week ended December 9th.
The four-week moving average of continuing claims also climbed to 1,923,000, an increase of 4,250 from the previous week’s revised average of 1,918,750.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company – www.instaforex.com
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