Jobless Claims in U.S. Little Changed in Payroll Survey Week
Source: Bloomberg
(Bloomberg) -- Fewer than 300,000 Americans filed applications for unemployment benefits for a second week, signaling the labor market remains resilient even as the economy shows signs of slowing.
Jobless claims rose by 1,000 to 291,000 in the seven days ended March 14, from a revised 290,000 in the prior period, a Labor Department report showed Thursday in Washington. The median forecast of 51 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for 293,000. The figures correspond to the week the government surveys employers to calculate the monthly payroll data, indicating hiring probably continued to pick up.
“ There’s clear progress in the labor market,” said Jim O’Sullivan, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics in Valhalla, New York. He is the top forecaster of jobless applications in the past two years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “With claims remaining under the 300,000 level, payrolls will keep growing at a strong pace. Employment growth is strong enough for consumer spending to continue to grow solidly.”
After weeks of weather-related swings, claims settling at the current low level shows employers are holding on to workers, which bodes well for household spending, the biggest part of the economy. The results are in sync with the assessment of Federal Reserve policy makers, who said after their meeting Wednesday that job-market conditions have improved.
Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-19/jobless-claims-in-u-s-little-changed-in-payroll-survey-week
