US initial jobless claims down 13,000 last week, matching estimates

224,000 claims filed last week; 4-week moving average up to 217,000

By Mucahithan Avcioglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The number of Americans filing first-time unemployment claims fell by 13,000 last week to 224,000, according to the US Labor Department data released Thursday.

The figure matched forecasts of 224,000 and was down from the previous week's upwardly revised 237,000.

The four-week moving average was 217,500 – an increase of 500 from the previous week's upwardly revised 217,000.

The number of continuing unemployment benefit claims rose to 1.897 million in the same period from 1.83 million the previous week.

The US economy added 64,000 jobs in November, after a loss of 105,000 in October.

The unemployment rate was up to 4.6% in November, the highest in about four years, from 4.4% in September, above expectations.

Kaynak:

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