More Americans filed for jobless claims last week, the Associated Press reports, but the labor market remains broadly healthy in the face of retreating inflation and elevated interest rates.
Applications for unemployment benefits rose by 13,000 to 231,000 for the week ending Nov. 11, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s the most in three months. The four-week moving average of claims, a less volatile measure, rose by 7,750 to 220,250.
Jobless claim applications are seen as representative of the number of layoffs in a given week.
Overall, 1.87 million people were collecting unemployment benefits the week that ended Nov. 4, about 32,000 more than the previous week and the most since March. Analysts suggest that those so-called “continuing claims,” are steadily rising because many of those who are already unemployed may now be having a harder time finding new work.
Still, the American labor market continues to show resilience in the midst of the Federal Reserve’s campaign to get inflation back down to its 2% target.
