The numbers: The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits last week was barely changed at 220,000, indicating that layoffs remain extremely low even as businesses cut back on hiring.
New jobless claims inched up to 220,000 from a revised 219,000 in the prior week, the government said Thursday. Economists had forecast new claims in the week ending Dec. 2 to total 222,000.
Layoffs are still historically low, but other reports show that businesses are hiring fewer people.
Key details: New jobless claims rose in 49 states and territories that report these figures to the federal government. They only fell in four states.
The increase in most states was likely exaggerated by the Thanksgiving holiday. Lots of people who just lost their jobs tend to wait until the following week to apply for benefits.
The effects of Thanksgiving also appeared to be evident in the number of actual claims — that is, before seasonal adjustments. They jumped by almost 94,000 to 293,511 to mark the highest level since January.
Just a week before, however, actual claims had totaled less than 200,000.
If the last two weeks are averaged together, actual jobless claims appeared to be in line with the recent trend.
The number of people collecting unemployment benefits in the U.S., meanwhile, fell by 64,000 to 1.86 million. Still, a gradual rise in these so-called continuing claims is a sign it’s taking longer for people to find new jobs.
Big picture: Higher interest rates orchestrated by the Federal Reserve to tame inflation finally appear to have slowed the economy and dampened the demand for labor. Job openings have steadily declined and businesses aren’t adding as many workers
Companies aren’t cutting many jobs and laying off workers, though. The economy is likely to avoid trouble so long as most people are working and unemployment stays low.
Looking ahead: “We think the claims data, along with other recent labor market statistics, are consistent with a job market that is cooling enough to rule out further rate hikes,” lead U.S. economist Nancy Vanden Houten of Oxford Economics wrote in a note to clients.
