Jobless Claims Unexpectedly? Increase
Applications for U.S. jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week, to the highest since mid-February, underscoring how the labor market is recovering in fits and starts.
Initial claims in regular state programs rose by 45,000 to 770,000 in the week ended March 13, Labor Department data showed Thursday. States with the largest increases in initial claims last week included Texas, Illinois and Virginia. The total number of claims in all unemployment programs was 18.22 million that week.
The recovery "remains uneven and far from complete," Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said during a press conference Wednesday.
"There are 10 million people that need to get back to work and it’s going to take some time for that to happen,' Powell said. "It's not going to happen overnight."