New jobless claims drop to 260K after weeks of increases
By Sylvan Lane - 01/27/22 08:37 AM EST
New applications for jobless aid fell sharply by 30,000 last week after several weeks of increases, according to data released Thursday by the Labor Department.
In the week ending Jan. 21, seasonally adjusted new claims for unemployment insurance totaled 260,000, falling from the previous week’s revised level of 286,000. The four-week moving average of claims rose by 15,000 to 247,000.
After falling below pre-pandemic levels in November, jobless claims rose steadily through January as the omicron variant drove a record-breaking spike in COVID-19 cases. Roughly 12 million Americans missed work at the beginning of January because either they or a loved one they cared for contracted COVID-19, according to Census Bureau data released last week.
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https://thehill.com/policy/finance/591586-new-jobless-claims-drop-to-260k-after-weeks-of-increases
