Jobless Claims

WASHINGTON — The number of newly laid-off workers seeking unemployment benefits rose last week, a sign that jobs remain scarce even as the economy recovers. The increase also may result from the difficulty the Labor Department has in seasonally adjusting the claims around the Easter holiday, which falls in different weeks each year. The Labor Department said yesterday that first-time claims increased by 18,000 in the week ended April 3, to a seasonally adjusted 460,000. That’s worse than economists’ estimates of a drop to 435,000, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.

NEW YORK - Service industries in the United States expanded less than projected and consumer confidence weakened, signaling the world's largest economy may be cooling. The Institute for Supply Management said Thursday that its nonmanufacturing index fell to a four-month low of 53.5 in April, from 56 in March. The median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was 55.3. A reading above 50 signals expansion. The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index fell to a two-month low last week.

WASHINGTON - Fewer people are claiming jobless benefits, leading economists to project that next week’s employment report will show a sharp drop in job losses for July compared with June. Claims for jobless aid, which track layoffs and firings, are trending downward in a modest sign of improvement in the labor market, economists note. That helps explain why analysts are forecasting that a net total of about 340,000 jobs will be lost in July. This would compare with a net total of 467,000 jobs lost in June and the staggering 741,000 that were lost in January - the most for any month since 1949.

Stocks had their worst week so far in 2012. The S&P 500 ended a short week off 0.7% - modest compared to last year's scary drops, but the worst since mid-December. Investors sold off stocks on renewed fears Spain may have trouble paying off debt. The selling was tempered by a report that the number of people seeking US jobless benefits fell to a four-year low.

WASHINGTON - A flurry of good news this week - including falling jobless claims, stronger consumer spending, and higher new-home sales - suggests the economic rebound, modest though it is, might just be here to stay. While analysts caution that the recovery will be too sluggish to stop the unemployment rate from rising, the reports are at least encouraging enough to calm fears of a dreaded “double-dip’’ recession. “This recovery continues to trudge ahead,’’ said economist Ken Mayland, president of ClearView Economics.

WASHINGTON — Fears that economic recovery is fizzling grew yesterday after the government and private sector issued weak reports on a number of fronts. Unemployment claims are up, home sales are plunging without government incentives, and manufacturing growth is slowing. Meanwhile, 1.3 million people are without federal jobless benefits now that Congress adjourned for a weeklong Independence Day recess without passing an extension. All of this worries economists. As jobless claims grow and benefits shrink, Americans have less money to spend, and the...

WASHINGTON - Fewer Americans than forecast filed applications for unemployment benefits last week, reflecting a drop in firings that may signal the job market is on the mend. Jobless claims fell by 23,000 to 381,000 in the week ended Dec. 3, the fewest since February, Labor Department figures showed yesterday. Other data showed consumer sentiment has stabilized around levels usually associated with recessions, and wholesalers boosted inventories heading into the holidays. A decrease in firings may foreshadow bigger gains in hiring that will help...

Markets rose following Wednesday's plunge as US jobless claims fell to a seven-month low. Fears about Europe's debt also eased after Greece named a new premier and Italian bond yields fell. A second report said the US trade gap unexpectedly narrowed in September as exports surged. Apple fell amid concern it may ship fewer iPads this year due to supply limits.

WASHINGTON — The picture of a steady but sluggish recovery emerged from reports yesterday that showed fewer people are claiming unemployment aid, while US exports are slowing. The reports echo Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke’s suggestion this week that the rebound will remain intact despite high unemployment, a fragile housing market, and Europe’s debt crisis. But it will take time to create enough jobs to reduce the 9.7 percent unemployment rate. Initial jobless claims fell by 3,000 to a seasonally adjusted 456,000, the Labor Department said yesterday.

WASHINGTON — Applications for unemployment aid have been fluctuating from week to week, offering an uncertain view of layoffs and the job market. First-time requests for jobless aid dropped last week to their lowest level since early May, the government said yesterday, erasing increases made in the last two months. Still, economists say it is hard to detect a trend in one week of declines. Initial claims have seesawed for several weeks and are not much lower than they were in January.

WASHINGTON - Claims for unemployment benefits dropped last week by 6,000 to 357,000, the lowest level since April 2008, the Labor Department reported. The number of people on unemployment benefit rolls also dropped, while those getting extended payments increased. The improved labor market, rising stock prices, and easier credit are lifting US consumer confidence and spending, which accounts for 70 percent of the economy. A report Friday may show the economy added more than 200,000 jobs in March for a third consecutive month, the longest streak of similar increases since late...

The economy in the US grew at a 3 percent annual rate in the last three months of 2011, the same as previously estimated, while corporate profits climbed at the slowest pace in three years, raising the risk that business investment and hiring will cool. The increase in gross domestic product was the biggest in more than a year and followed a 1.8 percent gain in the prior period, revised figures from the Commerce Department showed today in Washington. Company earnings were up 0.9 percent from the third quarter, the smallest advance since the last three months of 2008.

Stocks were mixed as investors were reminded that debt problems still lurk in Europe and the US economy is far from healed, with the federal government saying that more people than originally estimated had filed jobless claims. Investors were also sitting back as they wait for companies' earnings for the first quarter. Alcoa's results kick off the season April 10.

Stocks retreated, trimming the longest monthly rally since September 2009 for the S&P 500, as manufacturing contracted in China and Europe and FedEx's forecast disappointed. Bank of America fell 2.2% to pace declines in financial shares. Stocks fell even after data showed that US jobless claims had dropped to the lowest level in four years.

Stocks gained as Greece closed in on a deal to restructure its debt and avoid a default. That overshadowed a small increase in US jobless claims last week. Stocks rose worldwide as optimism about Greece's deal took hold. The close left the Dow up 97% since March 9, 2009, its Great Recession low point. The S&P 500 has more than doubled since then.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Slightly more people applied for US unemployment benefits last week. But the overall level stayed low enough to suggest the job market is strengthening. The Labor Department said Thursday that weekly applications increased by 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 362,000. The four-week average, which smooths week-to-week fluctuations, remained at roughly 355,000. That's essentially unchanged from last week's level, which was the lowest in four years. ‘‘We are not concerned by the modest rise in claims as the downtrend remains firmly in place," Joseph...

WASHINGTON -- The number of people filing new claims for unemployment benefits dropped last week to the lowest level in more than three years, a promising sign that companies feel better about the economy's prospects and are less inclined to get rid of workers. The Labor Department reported yesterday that new applications filed for jobless claims declined by a seasonally adjusted 14,000 to 328,000 for the week ending April 3. That marked the lowest level since Jan. 13, 2001, the week before President Bush's inauguration.