Jarrell Dillard of Bloomberg reports that continuing jobless claims climbed to the highest since late 2021. Dillard writes:
Initial applications for US unemployment benefits rose last week by the most since early May and continuing claims jumped, adding to evidence of a softening labor market.
Initial claims increased by 20,000 to 243,000 in the week ended July 13, matching the highest level since August 2023, according to Labor Department data released Thursday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 229,000 applications. […]
In the 20 years that preceded the Covid-19 pandemic, weekly initial applications averaged about 345,000, and continuing claims roughly 2.9 million.
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