US Weekly Jobless Claims Up 28,000 From Pandemic Low

US jobless claims came in at 222,000 for last week, some 28,000 above the previous week's pandemic low, as the employment market appeared to consolidate from a stretch of dynamic recovery, Labor Department data showed Thursday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd December, 2021) US jobless claims came in at 222,000 for last week, some 28,000 above the previous week's pandemic low, as the employment market appeared to consolidate from a stretch of dynamic recovery, Labor Department data showed Thursday.

"In the week ending November 27, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 222,000, an increase of 28,000 from the previous week's revised level," the department said.

The previous week's tally for claims was revised to 194,000, from an initial 199,000 stated by the department. That was the lowest number of filings for weekly unemployment benefits since the outbreak of the COVID-19 crisis in March 2020.

Economists polled by US media had expected 240,000 claims on the average for last week.

The weekly jobless claims are one of three employment statistics due this week on the labor market picture in the United States.

Earlier on Thursday, a report from labor market surveyor Challenger, Gray & Christmas showed that job cuts by US-based employers plummeted 34.

8% in November to 14,875, from an October count of 22,822. That was the lowest job cuts for a month since a reduction of 14,086 in May 1993.

The more important job statistic for this week will be the November non-farm payrolls report, due from the Labor Department on Friday. Economists are expecting 545,000 job additions for last month versus October's 531,000.

Nearly two years into the COVID-19 crisis, restoring job growth remains one of the main concerns of US policymakers.

The United States lost more than 21 million jobs between March and April 2020, at the height of business lockdowns forced by the coronavirus. At last count, officials said some 5 million of those jobs have not returned.

The American economy itself shrank 3.5% in 2020. Growth this year has been spotty, with an annualized 3.5% expansion in the first quarter, 3.6% in the second and 2.1% in the third.