U.S. Initial Unemployment Claims Jump to 236,000

U.S. initial unemployment claims, rose by 44,000 to 236,000 in the week ending December 6 according to the Department of Labor, up from the revised 192,000. The 4-week moving average also increased by 2,000 to 216,750. Insured unemployment rate decreased slightly to 1.2% for the week ending November 29. The number of insured unemployed individuals fell by 99,000 to 1,838,000. Unadjusted data increased significantly, with actual initial claims under state programs rising to 313,140, far above the expected 56,785 increase. Insured unemployment climbed to 1,964,961, with the unadjusted rate at 1.3%. New Jersey and Washington recorded the highest insured unemployment rates at 2.2%, while California and Texas saw the largest weekly drop in initial claims at 19,844 and 7,836, respectively.