Jobless claims reach four-year low; wholesale prices climb
Jobless claims reach four-year low; wholesale prices climb
Claims for jobless benefits dropped last week in the United States, matching the lowest level in four years and providing more evidence that the labor market is improving.
Applications for unemployment insurance payments decreased by 14,000 to 351,000 in the week ended March 10, Labor Department figures showed today. Economists had forecast that 357,000 initial claims would be filed, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey. Claims reached the same level a month ago, the lowest since March 2008.
Though more people are working, their cost of living is increasing. Another Labor Department report released today showed that wholesale prices climbed in February by the most in five months, reflecting a jump in fuel costs. The producer price index rose 0.4 percent following a 0.1 percent increase the prior month.
Companies have slowed the pace of firings and are expanding their work forces as sales and confidence improve and the threat of financial contagion from a European default diminishes. A Labor Department report last week showed job growth in February capped the best six months since 2006.
“The labor market is gaining momentum,” said Kevin Cummins, an economist at UBS Securities LLC in Stamford, Conn. “Claims corroborate the pickup in employment we saw in February and suggest the pace of the job growth is likely to continue.”
Claims for jobless benefits dropped last week in the United States, matching the lowest level in four years and providing more evidence that the labor market is improving.
Applications for unemployment insurance payments decreased by 14,000 to 351,000 in the week ended March 10, Labor Department figures showed today. Economists had forecast that 357,000 initial claims would be filed, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey. Claims reached the same level a month ago, the lowest since March 2008.
Though more people are working, their cost of living is increasing. Another Labor Department report released today showed that wholesale prices climbed in February by the most in five months, reflecting a jump in fuel costs. The producer price index rose 0.4 percent following a 0.1 percent increase the prior month.
Companies have slowed the pace of firings and are expanding their work forces as sales and confidence improve and the threat of financial contagion from a European default diminishes. A Labor Department report last week showed job growth in February capped the best six months since 2006.
“The labor market is gaining momentum,” said Kevin Cummins, an economist at UBS Securities LLC in Stamford, Conn. “Claims corroborate the pickup in employment we saw in February and suggest the pace of the job growth is likely to continue.”
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