Jobless claims drop
Initial unemployment claims declined 15,000 to 358,000 claims from last week’s revised 373,000 claims while continued claims increased by 64,000.
This chart shows the number of initial and continued jobless claims filed over the past two years. Since peaking in 2009, the number of claimants has declined steadily.
SoldAtTheTop
Today’s jobless claims report showed a decline to initial unemployment claims and an increase to continued unemployment claims as seasonally adjusted initial claims continued to trend below the closely watched 400K level.
Skip to next paragraphWriter, The PaperEconomy Blog
'SoldAtTheTop' is not a pessimist by nature but a true skeptic and realist who prefers solid and sustained evidence of fundamental economic recovery to 'Goldilocks,' 'Green Shoots,' 'Mustard Seeds,' and wholesale speculation.
Recent posts
-
05.25.12
Home prices increase -
05.24.12
Unemployment claims drop -
05.23.12
Mortgage rates slide to record lows -
05.22.12
Existing home sales on the rise -
05.21.12
Chicago Fed: US economy improving
Seasonally adjusted “initial” unemployment declined 15,000 to 358,000 claims from last week’s revised 373,000 claims while seasonally adjusted “continued” claims increased by 64,000 resulting in an “insured” unemployment rate of 2.8%.
Since the middle of 2008 though, two federal government sponsored “extended” unemployment benefit programs (the “extended benefits” and “EUC 2008” from recent legislation) have been picking up claimants that have fallen off of the traditional unemployment benefits rolls.
Currently there are some 3.50 million people receiving federal “extended” unemployment benefits.
Taken together with the latest 4.05 million people that are currently counted as receiving traditional continued unemployment benefits, there are 7.55 million people on state and federal unemployment rolls.
The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here.To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on paper-money.blogspot.com.
Follow Us