U.S. jobless claims dip to 220,000 but layoffs are starting to rise

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Economic Report

U.S. jobless claims dip to 220,000 but layoffs are starting to rise

Last Updated: Nov. 17, 2022 at 9:17 a.m. ET
First Published: Nov. 17, 2022 at 8:44 a.m. ET
By Jeffry Bartash

Large tech companies announce thousands of layoffs

The numbers: The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits in mid-November fell slightly to 222,000 — a low number historically — but layoffs have edged higher in the past month as the economy slows. ... Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal had forecast new claims to total 225,000 in the seven days ended Nov. 12. The figures are seasonally adjusted. ... The number of people applying for jobless benefits is one of the best barometers of whether the economy is getting better or worse. ... New unemployment filings are still extremely low, but layoffs appear to be on the rise, especially at large technology companies such as Amazon AMZN, -1.76%, Twitter and Facebook. META, -2.13%

Big picture: The jobs market is quite strong, but may be starting to flag. Job openings have declined, hiring has slowed and layoffs have started to increase. ... The Federal Reserve is raising interest rates to try to reduce high inflation, a strategy that works by reducing demand and economic growth. As a result, the labor market is likely to continue to soften.

Key details: Thirty of the 53 states and U.S. territories that report jobless claims showed a decline and 20 posted an increase. ... The only state to report a big increase in jobless claims was Minnesota. Kentucky showed the biggest decline. Most other states were little changed. ... The number of people already collecting unemployment benefits, meanwhile, rose by 13,000 to 1.5 million. It’s the first time they’ve topped 1.5 million since last March. ... One caveat on jobless claims: The government’s adjusted data has been more erratic since the pandemic. New jobless claims before seasonal adjustments, for instance, were much lower at 199,603 last week.

{snip}

[ProudMNDemocrat]

1. Massive layoffs usually occur right before the holidays.

Happens every year. Which is a damn shame.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

2. From the source:

https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/OPA/newsreleases/ui-claims/20222194.pdf

https://www.dol.gov/ui/data.pdf

News Release

Connect with DOL at
https://blog.dol.gov

TRANSMISSION OF MATERIALS IN THIS RELEASE IS EMBARGOED UNTIL
8:30 A.M. (Eastern) Thursday, November 17, 2022

UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE WEEKLY CLAIMS

SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA

In the week ending November 12, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 222,000, a decrease of 4,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 225,000 to 226,000. The 4-week moving average was 221,000, an increase of 2,000 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 218,750 to 219,000.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.0 percent for the week ending November 5, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending November 5 was 1,507,000, an increase of 13,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up 1,000 from 1,493,000 to 1,494,000. The 4-week moving average was 1,481,500, an increase of 31,000 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised
up by 250 from 1,450,250 to 1,450,500.

{snip}

UNADJUSTED DATA

{snip}

The total number of continued weeks claimed for benefits in all programs for the week ending October 29 was 1,287,399, an increase of 24,305 from the previous week. There were 2,608,347 weekly claims filed for benefits in all programs in the comparable week in 2021.

{snip the rest of the ten-page news release, until the end}

Weekly Claims Archives
Weekly Claims Data

U.S. Department of Labor news materials are accessible at http://www.dol.gov. The Department's Reasonable Accommodation Resource Center converts Departmental information and documents into alternative formats, which include Braille and large print. For alternative format requests, please contact the Department at [phone] (voice) or [phone] (federal relay).

U.S. Department of Labor
Employment and Training Administration
Washington, D.C. 20210
Release Number: USDL 22-2194-NAT

Program Contacts:
Kevin Stapleton: [phone]
Media Contact: [phone]