The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose to 200,000 in the week ended November 7, the U.S. Department of Labor said on Thursday, up 9,000 from the previous week's revised level of 191,000.
The previous week's figure was revised up by 2,000 from the 189,000 first reported, a level that had matched the lowest since 1969. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast about 195,000 claims for the latest week. The four-week moving average, which smooths out week-to-week swings, was 195,250, unchanged from the previous week's revised average.
The number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, fell by 20,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1,697,000 in the week ended October 31, while the insured unemployment rate held at 1.1 percent. Before seasonal adjustment, initial claims totalled 206,982, up 28,870 from the previous week. A year earlier, 238,729 initial claims were filed in the comparable week.
Claims have remained at historically low levels all year, never topping 230,000 in a single week, as employers have largely held on to workers despite uncertainty over the economy. The figures come as the Federal Reserve and investors watch the labour market closely for signs of cooling.
