New claims for USA unemployment insurance benefits edged up slightly last week but remained near a 42-year low, as the U.S. jobs market remains firm.
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The report said initial jobless claims inched up to 260,000, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week’s unrevised level of 259,000. Weekly claims settled below the key 300,000 benchmark nearly seven months ago and have fallen to levels last seen in the early 1970s, when the working-age population was much smaller. Many economists expect job gains to rebound after slowing in August and September.
A Labor Department analyst said there were no special factors influencing the data.
The four-week average, a less volatile measure, dropped 4,000 to 259,250.
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The Department of Labor added 2.14m people were already collecting weekly unemployment benefits, known as continuing claims, in the week to 17 October, a 37,000 decline from the prior week. “This is the lowest level for this average since December 15,1973”.
