Current:Home > InvestApplications for U.S. unemployment benefits dip to 210,000, another sign the job market is strong-DB Wealth Institute B2 Expert Reviews
Applications for U.S. unemployment benefits dip to 210,000, another sign the job market is strong
View Date:2024-12-23 23:12:23
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans signing up for unemployment benefits fell slightly last week, another sign that the labor market remains strong and most workers enjoy extraordinary job security.
The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claims dipped by 2,000 to 210,000. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out week-to-week ups and downs, rose by 2,500 to 211,250.
Overall, 1.8 million Americans were collecting unemployment benefits the week that ended March 9, up a modest 4,000 from the week before.
Applications for unemployment benefits are viewed as a proxy for layoffs and a sign of where the job market is headed. Despite high-profile job cuts at tech companies such as Google parent Alphabet, eBay and Cisco Systems, overall layoffs remain below pre-pandemic levels. The unemployment rate, 3.9% in February, has come in under 4% for 25 straight months, longest such streak since the 1960s.
The economy and the job market, supported by consumer spending, have proven resilient even though the Federal Reserve raised interest rates 11 times in 2022 and 2023 in an effort to combat inflation that flared up in 2021. Inflation has come down from a four-decade high 9.1% in June 2022 to 3.2% in February — but remains above the central bank’s 2% target.
Hiring has slowed from the breakneck pace of three years ago but remains strong: Employers added a record 604,000 jobs a month in 2021, 377,000 in 2022 and 251,000 last year. In February, job creation rose unexpectedly to 275,000.
“Overall, layoffs remain at low levels,’' said Rubeela Farooqi, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics. ”We expect job growth to slow somewhat but the unemployment rate to remain low this year.’'
The combination of easing inflation and a sturdy economy has raised hopes that the Fed can manage a so-called soft landing and tame price increases without tipping the economy into a recession. On Wednesday, the Fed signaled that it still expects to reverse policy and cut rates three times this year — a sign of confidence in the progress being made against inflation.
veryGood! (24)
Related
- Kalen DeBoer, Jalen Milroe save Alabama football season, as LSU's Brian Kelly goes splat
- What causes muscle twitching? And here's when you should worry.
- NHL predictions: Experts make their Stanley Cup, awards picks for 2023-24 season
- Mast snaps aboard historic Maine schooner, killing 1 and injuring 3
- Travis Kelce's and Patrick Mahomes' Kansas City Houses Burglarized
- Mauricio Umansky Spotted Out to Dinner With Actress Leslie Bega Amid Kyle Richards Separation
- Extremely rare Jurassic fossils discovered near Lake Powell in Utah: Right place at the right time
- How's your 401k doing after 2022? For retirement-age Americans, not so well
- Trump has promised to ‘save TikTok’. What happens next is less clear
- Extremely rare Jurassic fossils discovered near Lake Powell in Utah: Right place at the right time
Ranking
- FC Cincinnati player Marco Angulo dies at 22 after injuries from October crash
- Monday's Powerball is over $1.5 billion. What are the 10 biggest Powerball jackpots ever?
- 1 dead, 8 injured in mass shooting at Pennsylvania community center
- 2 Federal Reserve officials say spike in bond yields may allow central bank to leave rates alone
- Ranked voting will decide a pivotal congressional race. How does that work?
- 12-year-old Texas boy convicted of using AR-style rifle to shoot, kill Sonic worker
- WEOWNCOIN: Top Five Emerging Companies in the Cryptocurrency Industry That May Potentially Replace Some of the Larger Trading Companies
- Krispy Kreme, Scooby-Doo partner to create limited-edition Scooby-Doo Halloween Dozen
Recommendation
-
Black, red or dead: How Omaha became a hub for black squirrel scholarship
-
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announces he's ending Democratic primary campaign to run as independent
-
Meta Quest 3 review: powerful augmented reality lacks the games to back it up
-
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announces he's ending Democratic primary campaign to run as independent
-
Parts of Southern California under quarantine over oriental fruit fly infestation
-
Here's what is open and closed on Columbus Day/Indigenous People's Day
-
Powerball jackpot climbs to $1.55 billion. What to know about today's drawing.
-
Pro-Israel, pro-Palestine supporters hold demonstrations in Times Square, outside United Nations