Jobless Claims Rise Higher Than Expected

Jobless Claims , Rise Higher Than Expected .

CNBC reports that initial filings for unemployment insurance rose last week but remained relatively low amid a contracted labor market.

For the week ending March 25, jobless claims totaled 198,000, up 7,000 from the week before.

According to the Labor Department, new jobless claims were higher than the estimated 195,000.

CNBC reports that the numbers indicate that layoffs may slow despite predictions that unemployment will rise through 2023.

The Labor Department's report also showed that continuing unemployment claims rose by 4,000 to reach 1.689 million.

The four-week moving average rose slightly to 198,250.

Since mid-January, the four-week moving average for weekly unemployment claims has remained below 200,000.

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Last week, Federal Reserve estimates suggested that the unemployment rate will rise to 4.5% in 2023.

Currently, that figure is sitting at 3.6%, meaning that over 540,000 jobs are expected to be lost in the coming year.

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Although hiring in the U.S. economy remains strong, there appears to be the potential for more slack in hiring trends set for the spring and summer months, Stuart Hoffman, senior economic adviser at PNC, via CNBC.

This is not to say that economic conditions are set to collapse entirely.

Rather, any newly laid-off workers are not as likely to be so quickly rehired as businesses assess their plans to weather what we expect will be a mild recession in the second half of this year, Stuart Hoffman, senior economic adviser at PNC, via CNBC