Lines for Unemployment Benefits Grow

January 31, 2002 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Initial jobless claims, recently at a six-month low, have risen by 30,000 in the latest week, according to the Department of Labor (DoL).

The data release shows that the number of workers filing for unemployment insurance benefits for the first time, increased to 390,000 for the week ending Jan 26, from 360,000 the previous week, roughly in line with Wall Street expectations.

The four-week moving average, which smoothes out weekly volatility, fell by 15,250 to 386,000 claims – the lowest level since August last year.

The data release comes ahead of January’s unemployment figure to be released tomorrow. Economists from Standard & Poor’s expect the unemployment rate to increase to 5.9% from December’s 5.8% reading.


 

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