RED red...:Jobless Claims in U.S. Unexpectedly Increased 31,000 Last Week to 473,000
By Bob Willis
Feb. 18 (Bloomberg) -- The number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment insurance unexpectedly increased last week, pointing to an uneven recovery in the labor market.
Initial jobless applications rose by 31,000 to 473,000 in the week ended Feb. 13, Labor Department figures showed today in Washington. The total number of people receiving unemployment insurance was unchanged and those receiving extended benefits increased.
Companies may want evidence of accelerating sales before hiring after making the deepest payroll cuts in the post-World War II era. Federal Reserve policy makers said last month that while consumer spending has picked up, it’s partly “constrained by a weak labor market.”
“There is still a lot of labor market weakness out there,” said Steven Ricchiuto, chief economist at Mizuho Securities USA Inc. in New York. “I don’t think the weather has had as big an impact on claims as many think it has.”
Economists forecast claims would fall to 438,000, from a previously estimated 440,000 for the week ended Feb. 6, according to the median of 42 projections in a Bloomberg News survey. Estimates ranged from 440,000 to 480,000.
The Labor Department said it had to estimate filings for Texas, Hawaii and Alabama because it didn’t receive data from employment offices in those states. California provided its own estimates instead of complete figures.
All Recipients
Continuing claims held at 4.56 million in the week ended Feb. 6. The continuing claims figure does not include the number of Americans receiving extended benefits under federal programs.
The number of people who’ve used up their traditional benefits and are now collecting extended payments rose by about 274,500 to 6 million in the week ended Jan. 30.
The unemployment rate among people eligible for benefits, which tends to track the jobless rate, held at 3.5 percent in the week ended Feb. 6, today’s report showed. Twenty-four states and territories had an increase in claims for that same week, while 29 had a decrease.
A separate report today from the Labor Department showed wholesale prices in the U.S. accelerated more than anticipated in January, led by a jump in costs of energy, light trucks and pharmaceuticals. The 1.4 percent rise in prices paid to factories, farmers and other producers followed a 0.4 percent increase in December, the government said.
9.7 Percent
The unemployment rate in the U.S. dropped to 9.7 percent in January, while payrolls declined by 20,000, Labor Department figures showed Feb. 6. Manufacturers added to payrolls for the first time in three years and that may help revive the rest of the labor market.
Some companies continue to cut staff. Humana Inc., the best-performing U.S. health-insurance stock this year, will reduce its workforce by 5 percent as the company faces shrinking private-sector enrollments and cuts in government-backed Medicare payments.
About 2,500 jobs will be eliminated through attrition, outsourcing and shedding positions, the Louisville, Kentucky- based company said Feb. 4 in a statement. The insurer also plans to hire 1,100 people in the growth areas of medical-cost containment, pharmacy management and specialty products, for a net reduction of 1,400 workers.
“This regrettable but necessary reduction in our workforce is a direct result of Humana’s need to align the size of our company with that of our membership,” said Michael McCallister, the company’s president and chief executive officer, in the statement.
3,000 Cuts
Warren Buffett’sBerkshire Hathaway Inc. cut about 3,000 jobs since December after customers scaled back orders for building-related materials, the firm said in a regulatory filing last week.
“If you look at our carpet business, our brick business, our insulation business, all of those businesses have had significant reductions in employment,” Buffett said in an interview in Omaha, Nebraska, on Jan. 20. “The day the orders come in, we hire back. But there’s no reason to hire people if they don’t have anything to do.”
For Related News and Information: News on the U.S. labor market: TNI US LABOR <GO> Stories on the U.S. economy: NI USECO <GO> Stories on U.S. consumers: TNI US CONS <GO> For a news search on the recession: STNI USRECESSION <GO>
Last Updated: February 18, 2010 08:52 EST
Market Data 
Markets 
AI
