The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week but remains at historically healthy levels.
Jobless claim applications rose by 9,000, to 224,000, for the week of Nov. 30, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s more than the 214,000 analysts were forecasting.
Weekly applications for jobless benefits are considered a proxy for U.S. layoffs.
While the job market has shown some softening recently, it remains healthy and has exceeded most expectations considering that interest rates have been elevated in recent years. The Federal Reserve jacked up rates in 2022 and into 2023 in an attempt to squelch the sky-high inflation that developed when the U.S. economy rebounded from the brief but sharp pandemic recession.
The Fed has cut its benchmark rate at its last two meetings in response to receding inflation, which has fallen close to the U.S. central bank’s 2% target.
In October, U.S. employers added a paltry 12,000 jobs, a total that economists say was crimped by the effects of strikes and hurricanes that left many workers temporarily off payrolls.
Analysts forecast that the government will report on Friday that U.S. employers added 215,000 jobs in November, a healthy figure more in line with recent months.
