US unemployment aid applications jump to 388,000
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Weekly applications for U.S. unemployment benefits jumped 46,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 388,000, the highest in four months. The increase represents a rebound from the previous week's sharp drop. Both swings were largely due to technical factors.
The four-week average of applications, a less volatile measure, fell slightly to 365,500, the Labor Department said Thursday. That is a level consistent with modest hiring.
Last week, California reported a large drop in applications, pushing down the overall figure to the lowest since February 2008. This week, it reported a significant increase as it processed applications delayed from the previous week.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A department spokesman said the seasonally adjusted numbers "are being distorted ... by an issue of timing."
Applications are a proxy for layoffs. When they decline, it suggests hiring is improving.
Some recent reports suggest the economy is picking up. Retail sales grew in September at a healthy clip. And builders started construction on new homes and apartments last month at the fastest pace in more than four years.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Still, the economy is not growing fast enough to generate much hiring. Growth slowed to a tepid annual rate of 1.3 percent in the April-June quarter, down from 2 percent in the previous quarter. Most economists see growth staying at or below 2 percent in the second half of the year