ZCZC
BCN-21
US-ECONOMY-JOBLESS
U.S. jobless claims rise last week
WASHINGTON, Aug. 30, 2019 (BSS/Xinhua) – The number of initial jobless
claims in the United States increased last week, according to a report
released by the U.S. Labor Department on Thursday.
In the week ending Aug. 24, the number of people filing for U.S.
unemployment benefits increased by 4,000 to 215,000. Meanwhile, the previous
week’s level was revised up by 2,000 from 209,000 to 211,000.
The report also showed that the four-week moving average of initial claims,
a method to iron out data volatility, decreased by 500 to 214,500.
As a leading indicator of unemployment status in the United States, a lower
reading in jobless claims indicates lower overall layoffs. The reading of
jobless claims remained below the 300,000 threshold, signaling a tight labor
market in the United States.
For the bigger picture of the U.S. labor market, American employers added
164,000 jobs in July, and the unemployment rate remained at 3.7 percent, the
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Aug. 2. The Bureau is scheduled
to release the August unemployment rate on Sept. 6.
BSS/XINHUA/HR/1455