New unemployment filings in U.S. rise to highest level in 8 months – By Clyde Hughes (UPI) / July 14, 2022
July 14 (UPI) — The number of American workers filing for new unemployment benefits has increased to its highest level since last fall, the Labor Department said Thursday in its weekly update.
The number of first-time filings, the department said, rose to about 244,000 last week, which is the most recent period for which data is available. It represented week-to-week increase of 9,000.
The figure is the highest it’s been since last November and is close to the lowest post-COVID19 pandemic level, 256,000.
The number of new claims was higher than most economists predicted. They said they expected Thursday’s report to show a total of about 235,000 new claims.
