The Labor Department reported Thursday that new applications for unemployment insurance rose by a seasonally adjusted 16,000 to 442,000 for the work week ending May 31. The increase pushed claims to their highest level since the week ending April 26. ...
In another report, orders to U.S. factories fell 2.9 percent in April from March, marking the largest decline in 17 months, the Commerce Department said. The decrease was a lot deeper than the 1.8 percent drop economists were forecasting. ...
Last week's rise in jobless claims surprised economists, who were predicting they would fall to 421,000. However, some of last week's sharp increase in claims probably reflected seasonal adjustment difficulties related to the Memorial Day holiday, a Labor Department analyst said. ...
Even so, for 16 straight weeks new claims have been running above the 400,000 mark - a level associated with a largely stagnant job market, economists say. ...
The more stable, four-week moving average of new claims, which smooths out week-to-week fluctuations, rose last week by 3,000 to 430,500, the highest level in two weeks. ...
Karl Rove is probably scheduling a parachute drop by Bush into an unemployment office as soon as he gets back and has a little downtime in Crawford. "Message: I care!"