The data from the Labor Department showed on Thursday the number of
applications for unemployment unexpectedly increased last week.
According to the report, the initial claims for unemployment benefits rose
by 55,000 to 286,000 for the week ended January 15. This was the highest weekly
total since mid-October 2021.
Economists had expected 220,000 new claims last week.
Claims for
the prior week were revised upwardly to 231,000 from the initial estimate of 230,000.
Meanwhile, the four-week moving average of jobless claims increased to 231,000
from an upwardly unrevised 211,000 (from 210,750) in the previous week. This represented
the highest number since late November.
As for continuing claims, they rose to 1,635,000
from a downwardly revised 1,551,000 (from 1,559,000) in the previous week.