The numbers: Initial jobless claims rose by 10,000 to 210,000 in the week ended Oct. 21, the Labor Department said Thursday.
Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had estimated new claims would rise 9,000 to 207,000.
Last week claims fell a revised 11,000 to 200,000. That compared with the initial estimate of a drop of 13,000 to 198,000.
After drifting higher this year, claims have fallen back to a range not seen since January.
Key details: The number of people already collecting jobless benefits in the week ended Oct. 14 rose by 63,000 to 1.79 million. That’s the fifth straight increase and the highest level since May. It could be a sign that workers are having trouble finding new work quickly.
On an unadjusted basis, initial jobless claims rose 9,498 to 9,892.
Big picture: The low jobless claims suggest that employment conditions remain very strong and economic growth might not slow in the fourth quarter as many economists expect. As such the Fed might need to raise rates a bit further. Low claims mean few layoffs. The rise in continued claims could mean that hiring is slowing down.
What are they saying: “The continuing claims numbers bear watching for signals about a softening in labor demand, if a growing number of workers stay on government support going forward, unable to find other jobs quickly,” said Rubeela Farooqi, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics.
Market reaction: Stocks
DJIA
SPX
were set to open lower on Thursday while the 10-year Treasury yield
BX:TMUBMUSD10Y
fell to 4.93% after the data was released.
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