US Initial Jobless Claims Rise, Job Market Remains Stable

On 5 December, data from the US Department of Labor showed that initial jobless claims increased last week. Initial jobless claims in the United States to the week of 30 November recorded 224,000 people, compared with 215,000 people in the previous week. Economists surveyed by the Wall Street Journal previously expected that the latest week of initial jobless claims would be 215,000 people. Continuing claims fell to 1.87 million, compared with 1.9 million the week before. The data showed that initial jobless claims rose, but were fairly stable. the November employment report will be released on Friday. Analysts expect the November jobs report to show a significant recovery in employment after October's data was impacted by hurricanes and the Boeing strike.