New U.S. jobless claims hit the highest level in four months.
The U.S. Department of Labor said on the 11th (local time) that initial jobless claims for last week (May 31–June 6) rose by 4,000 from the previous week to 229,000. That is the highest level in about four months since the first week of February (Feb. 1–7) and exceeded the market forecast of 220,000.
Continuing claims, which count those filing for unemployment benefits for two weeks or more, totaled 1,795,000 for May 24–30, up 24,000 from the prior week.
Still, the market largely views the increase as temporary due to seasonal factors and is cautious about interpreting it as a sign of a slowdown in the labor market.
Bloomberg said that the period right after Memorial Day at the end of May and the start of summer break for emergency schools overlap, and that jobless claims tend to rise around this time each year.
Experts said it will take watching the trend over the next few weeks to judge the direction of the labor market. Overall, U.S. jobless claims are still assessed to be at historically low levels.