Investing.com – The number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week rose unexpectedly, official data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending November 18 rose by 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 393,000, confounding expectations for a decline of 1,000 to 390,000.
The previous week’s figure was revised up to 391,000 from 388,000, which was the lowest since early April.
Continuing jobless claims in the week ended November 11 rose to 3.691 million, outstripping expectations for a gain to 3.615 million. Continuing claims for the previous week were revised up to 3.623 million, from 3.608 million.
The average of new claims over the past four weeks, a smoother gauge than the volatile weekly number, fell 3,250 to 394,250, reaching the lowest level since early April.
The report was released a day earlier than usual due to the Thanksgiving Day holiday Thursday.
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar remained higher against the euro, with EUR/USD dropping 0.77% to trade at 1.3400.
Meanwhile, U.S. equity markets held on to losses following the data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures indicated a loss of 0.85%, S&P 500 futures fell 1.05%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures shed 0.75%.
In a report, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending November 18 rose by 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 393,000, confounding expectations for a decline of 1,000 to 390,000.
The previous week’s figure was revised up to 391,000 from 388,000, which was the lowest since early April.
Continuing jobless claims in the week ended November 11 rose to 3.691 million, outstripping expectations for a gain to 3.615 million. Continuing claims for the previous week were revised up to 3.623 million, from 3.608 million.
The average of new claims over the past four weeks, a smoother gauge than the volatile weekly number, fell 3,250 to 394,250, reaching the lowest level since early April.
The report was released a day earlier than usual due to the Thanksgiving Day holiday Thursday.
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar remained higher against the euro, with EUR/USD dropping 0.77% to trade at 1.3400.
Meanwhile, U.S. equity markets held on to losses following the data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures indicated a loss of 0.85%, S&P 500 futures fell 1.05%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures shed 0.75%.