Weekly Jobless Claims Rise More Than Expected

The Labor Department said Thursday Weekly jobless claims rose by 13,000 to 277,000 for the week ending June 11, higher than the estimate for 270,000. The prior week was unchanged at 264,000.

The four-week moving average–which is widely considered to be a better gauge, as it irons out volatility–was 269,250, a decrease of 250 from the previous week’s unrevised average of 269,500.

A Labor Department analyst said there were no special factors impacting this week’s initial claims and no state was triggered “on” the Extended Benefits program during the week ending May 28. This marks 67 consecutive weeks of initial claims below 300,000, the longest streak since 1973.

The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending May 28 were in Alaska (3.5), Puerto Rico (2.6), Wyoming (2.6), West Virginia (2.5), New Jersey (2.3), Pennsylvania (2.3), Connecticut (2.2), California (2.0), Illinois (1.9), and Massachusetts (1.9).

The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending June 4 were in Pennsylvania (+2,049), Ohio (+1,830), Wisconsin (+1,341), Louisiana (+452), and Kentucky (+300), while the largest decreases were in California (-9,038), Georgia (-1,251), New Jersey (-1,214), Missouri (-1,202), and New York (-853).