Unemployed Americans wait in line for to fill out applications for jobless benefits. (Photo: Reuters)
The Labor Department said Thursday weekly jobless claims rose by 6,000 to 265,000 last week. That came in lower than the estimate for 268,000. The prior week was revised lower by 6,000 to 259,000.
No state was triggered “on” the Extended Benefits program during the week ending March 5, according to the Labor Department, and an analyst said no special factors impacted the data. Though the jobs market has been plagued by low wages, low participation and part-time opportunities, the report marks 55 consecutive weeks of initial claims below 300,000, the longest streak since 1973.
The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending March 5 were in Alaska (4.4), New Jersey (3.2), West Virginia (3.2), Wyoming (3.1), Pennsylvania (3.0), Connecticut (2.9), Montana (2.9), Rhode Island (2.9), Illinois (2.8), and Massachusetts (2.8).
The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending March 12 were in California (+1,359), Nebraska (+662), Washington (+503), Oklahoma (+318), and Vermont (+285), while the largest decreases were in New York (-1,549), Illinois (-1,234), New Jersey (-1,079), Ohio (-909), and Florida (-852).
