Reply #6: U.S. initial jobless claims bounce back to 349,000 [View All]

[UpInArms]

http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38183.3546527778-815974688&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=&value=&categories=&

WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) - Seasonal layoffs in autos and other manufacturing industries pushed seasonally adjusted U.S. initial jobless claims higher by 40,000 to 349,000 last week, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Claims had fallen 40,000 to a revised 309,000 the prior week. Initial claims have been at 349,000 for three of the past four weeks. The volatility in the data is the result of the timing of seasonal layoffs for plant retoolings, a Labor Department spokesman explained. The four-week average of initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose by 3,250 to 339,000. Meanwhile, the number of Americans receiving state benefits rose by 112,000 to 2.97 million in the week ending July 3, a six-week high.