First-time weekly jobless claims in the U.S. jumped by 21,000 to a seasonally adjusted 313,000 during the week to Saturday, the Labor Department said Wednesday.
The tally was at far above of the range of consensus expectations compiled by various news organizations for new claims of somewhere between 280,000 and 295,000.
The government revised the prior week’s tally for initial jobless claims to 292,000 from the originally reported 291,000.
Meanwhile, the four-week moving average for new claims – often viewed as a more reliable measure of the labor market since it smoothens out week-to-week volatility – was up by 6,250 claims to 294,000.
Continuing claims decreased by 17,000 to a seasonally adjusted 2.32 million in the week ended Nov. 15.
There were no special factors impacting this week’s initial claim, the Labor Department said.
