Weekly US jobless claims jump as lockdown restrictions reimposed
The ranks of Americans filing for jobless claims for the first time grew far more quickly than expected last week, as Covid-19 lockdown restrictions were reimposed.
According to the Department of Labor, over the week ending on 5 December, initial unemployment claims jumped by 137,000 to reach 853,000 (consensus: 740,000).
Including those filing under the temporary Pandemic Unemployment Assistance programme, initial claims hit 1.4m.
The four-week moving average, which aims to smooth out the variations from one week to another also snapped higher, by 35,500 to 776,000.
Secondary unemployment claims meanwhile, which are those not being filed for the first time, and which reference the week finishing on 28 November, grew by 230,000 to approximately 5.757m - their first increase since August.
Commenting on the implications of Thursday's data, Nancy Vanden Houten, lead US economist at Oxford Economics, pointed out how during the week ending on 21 November there remained 13.1m claimants for PUA and PEUC (Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation) benefits.
"The PEUC program is set to expire at the end of this month and a declining number of states are offering extended benefits," she said.
"The claims figures are overstating the unique number of individuals receiving benefits, but millions are at risk of losing assistance if policymakers fail to deliver another coronavirus relief package that extends these programs."