US jobless claims hit highest level in two months in week to 28 August

The number of unemployment benefits claimants in the US rose last week, figures released on Thursday showed.

According to the Labor Department, new claims rose by 12,000 to 282,000 in the last week of August, to reach the highest level in two months, although initial claims remained at very low levels, a sign companies aren't laying off many workers.

The figure was higher than analysts' expectations for a 275,000 reading.

However, despite the increase, initial claims remained under the 300,000 level for the past six months, the longest stretch since 2000.

Meanwhile, the average of new claims over the last four weeks rose by 3,250 to seasonally adjusted 275,500, the report added.

The four-week average is considered more reliable as it smooths out sharp fluctuations in the more volatile weekly report and, as such, is seen as a more accurate indicator of the health of the labour market.

The Labor Department added 2.26m people were already collecting weekly unemployment benefits, known as continuing claims, in the week to 22 August, a 9,000 decline from the prior week.

"Looking through the volatility in this week’s initial claims, labor market separations continue to indicate a healthy labor market." analysts at Barclays said in a note.

"We continue to look for non-farm payroll gains of 225,000 and a one-tenth decline in the unemployment rate, to 5.2%, in tomorrow’s August employment report."