Jobless Claims at 26-Year High; Import Prices Fall Source: CNBC The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits surged to a 26-year high last week, Labor Department data showed on Thursday, as a deepening recession forced employers to cut back on hirings. Also, U.S import prices saw their largest monthly decline on record in November as the costs for imported oil and non-petroleum products tumbled, highlighting the deteriorating economic envrionment. And the U.S. trade deficit widened unexpectedly in October as imports from China rose to a new record and oil imports rebounded as prices fell by a record amount, a Commerce Department report showed. Initial claims for state unemployment insurance benefits jumped by 58,000, the biggest increase since September 2005, to a seasonally adjusted 573,000 in the week ended Dec. 6 from an upwardly revised 515,000 the previous week. That was the highest print since November 1982, when 612,000 workers submitted new claims for unemployment benefits.
A Labor Department official said there were no special factors influencing the report. Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast 525,000 new claims versus a previously reported figure of 509,000 the week before. The four-week moving average of new jobless claims, a better gauge of underlying labor trends because it smoothes out week-to-week volatility, rose to 540,500 from 526,250 the prior week, the highest since Dec. 18, 1982 when a reading of 554,500 was recorded. Continuing claims jumped to 4.43 million in the week ended Nov. 29, also a 26-year high, from 4.09 million the previous week. The 338,000 increase in continuing claims matched the gain recorded in the week ended Nov. 30, 1974. Meanwhile, import prices plunged 6.7 percent, the largest monthly decline since records began in 1988, after falling by a revised 5.4 percent in October. For the 12 months through November import prices were down 4.4 percent. Petroleum prices dived 25.8 percent, also the biggest monthly decline since records started in 1988, after dropping by a revised 19.8 percent the previous month. Non-petroleum import prices fell 1.8 percent, also the largest monthly drop since 1988, the Department of Labor said. Prices for U.S. exports fell 3.2 percent in November, also recording the biggest monthly decline since 1988. Export prices declined 2.0 percent in October. Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast import prices dropping 4.9 percent and export prices falling 1.5 percent in November. At the same time, the trade gap grew 1.1 percent to $57.2 billion, even though imports and exports both fell for the third consecutive month in the face of slumping world demand. Wall Street economists had expected the trade gap to narrow in October to $53.5 billion. Even as overall imports fell, imports from China increased 2.8 percent to $34.0 billion--a statistic likely to fuel U.S. criticism that China's yuan remains undervalued against the dollar. The U.S. trade gap with China also set a record at $28.0 billion --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Kences1" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/kences1?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
