US initial jobless claims steady at highest level since October 2021

ISTANBUL

The number of Americans filing first-time unemployment claims remained unchanged last week, according to Labor Department data released on Thursday.

The previous week's figure was revised up by 1,000 from 261,000 to 262,000, which marked the highest level for the claims since Oct. 30, 2021, when it was 264,000, the department said in a statement.

The figure, however, came in higher than market estimates of 250,000.

The four-week moving average was 246,750, an increase of 9,250 from the previous week's revised average.

"This is the highest level for this average since November 20, 2021 when it was 249,250," the statement said.

The US economy added 339,000 jobs in May, but the unemployment rate unexpectedly rose to 3.7%, from 3.4% in April.