Jobless Claims Edge Up to 227,000 as July Ends, Indicating A Still Strong Labor MarketJohn Carney 3 Aug 2023
The number of Americans filing initial claims for jobless benefits rose slightly last week, indicative of a still very tight labor market.
Initial claims rose to a seasonally adjusted 227,000 in the week that ended July 29, the Labor Department said Thursday. This was a rise of 6,000 from the prior week, which was 7,000 lower than the week that preceded it.
The four-week moving average of weekly claims, which smooths out the volatility in the weekly figures, declined to 228,250.
Initial claims have been coming in at low levels in recent weeks, falling substantially in three out of the past five weeks. Some of those declines may have been due to various holidays, such as July 4th and Juneteenth. Especially in a tight labor market, employers do not want to seem callous (or worse) by announcing payroll reductions around important national holidays.
What’s more, employee summer vacations can force employers to hold back on layoffs.
Layoffs are expected to increase in the weeks ahead, based on regulatory filings and media reports. The claims numbers for last week, for example, do not factor in the Sunday shutdown of trucking giant Yellow.
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https://www.breitbart.com/economy/2023/08/03/jobless-claims-edge-up-to-227000-as-july-ends-indicating-a-still-strong-labor-market/
