First-time claims for jobless benefits fell last week, hitting the lowest level we've seen since January. The U.S. Department of Labor pegged the number at 521,000. This is down from the previous week's 554,000 (which had been revised upward). Wall Street economists anticipated 540,000. Claims of this type have fallen four times in five weeks, and the four-week average reached 539,750 - its lowest level since January 17, 2009.

In general, first-time claims for unemployment benefits have been declining since the spring, though slowly. Unfortunately, they still remain well above the 325,000 that economists claim to be indicative of a healthy economy.

Continue reading First-time jobless claims fall faster than expected

First-time jobless claims fall faster than expected originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Let's look at these numbers:

• In the past year 5.5 million people exhausted their standard 26 week unemployment benefits, the highest on record.
• 3.4 million people depend on extended benefits which last about 20 wees, also a record.
• Extended benefits vary by state, ranging from 20 weeks to 53 weeks. More than half of states have triggered the 53 week benefits.
• According to the National Law Employment Project 402,000 Americans will exhaust their benefits by the end of September. That figure will more than triple by the end of October.

Continue reading 1.3 million to lose jobless benefits by year's end

1.3 million to lose jobless benefits by year's end originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 04 Sep 2009 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.