US Initial Jobless Claims Show Slight Increase... "Focus on Impact of Trump Administration Restructuring"
Summary
- US initial jobless claims exceeded expectations, suggesting increased labor market instability.
- The increase in initial jobless claims compared to the previous week was attributed to the impact of the Trump administration's restructuring.
- The figures showed that initial jobless claims in Washington DC reached their highest level in two years.
Increased by 5,000 to 219,000 compared to previous week
Washington DC sees highest initial jobless claims in 2 years
The US Department of Labor reported on the 20th that initial jobless claims for the previous week (February 8-15) increased by 5,000 to 219,000 compared to the previous week. This exceeded the expected 214,500 claims.
Continuing unemployment claims, representing those receiving benefits for more than two weeks, increased by 24,000 to 1,869,000 from the previous week. The increase in initial jobless claims from the previous week is interpreted as indicating greater labor market instability.
Bloomberg News reported that "economists are closely watching jobless claims numbers to assess the impact of the Donald Trump administration's restructuring on the labor market." Initial jobless claims in Washington DC reached their highest level in two years.
The four-week moving average of initial jobless claims was 215,250, nearly unchanged from the previous week.
Reporter Kim In-yeop inside@hankyung.com
Korea Economic Daily
hankyung@bloomingbit.ioThe Korea Economic Daily Global is a digital media where latest news on Korean companies, industries, and financial markets.
