WASHINGTON — Initial jobless claims rose for the first time in three weeks, expanding by 20,000 new filings for unemployment benefits during the week ended Oct. 30 to finish at 457,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday.
Continuing claims for the week ended Oct. 23 dropped to 4.34 million, the third decline in four weeks and the lowest level since November 2008. Economists polled by Thomson Reuters expected 442,000 initial claims and 4.380 million continuing claims.
Initial claims for the week ended Oct. 23 were revised slightly higher to 437,000 from the 434,000 level initially reported last week. The revised figure is still the second-lowest weekly level this year, following a 427,000 reading the week ended July 10. Continuing claims for the week of Oct. 16 were revised to 4.382 million from 4.356 million.
"Initial claims rebounded in the latest week and are now slightly below the year-to-date average," Steven Wood, chief economist at Insight Economics, said in a research note. "Nevertheless, the level of claims still suggests a relatively high level of layoffs."
