Weekly unemployment insurance claims moved higher last week despite major hopes that the US labor market is posed for strong recovery heading to the fall.
- The initial claims for unemployment insurance totaled 419,000 for the week ending July 17, higher than the estimated upwardly revised 368,000 from the prior week.
- The jobless figures was the highest weekly count since May 15 and came when it was expected that companies will be more aggressive in filling vacant positions.
- On a positive note, continuing claims dropped to a new pandemic low, 3.24 million declining by 126,000. The last higher claims were recorded on March 14, 2020, when the government imposed restrictions on closure of businesses.
- Total of Americans receiving benefits under all government programs declined by 372,270 to 13.84 million. 12 months ago, 30.6 million people were receiving benefits.
Last week’s unexpected increase in claims comes as concerns over the new Covid-19 delta variant increase.
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Source: U.S. Department of Labor.
