Jobless claims rise first time in a month

After three weeks of decline, more Americans applied for jobless claims last week. The Labor Department said on Thursday that last week, jobless claims rose by 23,000 to 248,000. Economists cite the lingering effects of the Omicron variant as a reason for the rise. 

Economist Ian Shepherdson said in a report, "The trend is still falling, unwinding the hit from the Omicron Covid wave, and claims likely will drop next week." He added, "The pre-Omicron low was [188,000] in the first week of December; we expect that to be reached again by late March."

The 4-week average for claims fell by 10,500 to 243,250. It was the second straight week of declines seen after rising for five weeks as the Omicron variant disrupted businesses in many parts of the US. In total, less than 1.6 million Americans were collecting jobless aid last week, with a decrease of about 26,000 from the previous week. There are about 4 million more job openings than unemployed workers and overall the job market is still healthy. Hiring remains strong and employers added  467,000 jobs last month.

Source: CBS News