Spike in US unemployment claims
THE number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits rose last week to the highest level since September 2001, as hurricanes kept residents of Texas and Louisiana out of work.
Initial jobless claims increased by 32,000 to 493,000 in the week that ended last Saturday, from 461,000 in the prior week, Bloomberg News reported the United States government as saying yesterday.
Hurricanes Ike and Gustav added 50,000 claims, the department said.
The figures may reinforce concern that consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of the United States economy, will falter.
Growth is already slowing due to the housing slump and the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.
“The labor market is clearly in recession,” said Steven Wood, president of California-based Insight Economics LLC.
The number of people continuing to collect jobless benefits climbed close to a five-year high of 3.542 million in the week ending on September 13, from 3.479 million in the prior week.