“Higher than expected” U.S. unemployment in “bumpy labor market recovery,” according to Forbes.
QUICK FACTS:
- Forbes is reporting a spike in Americans filing for unemployment benefits last week.
- About 419,000 people filed for unemployment benefits.
- This represents an increase of 49,000 over the previous week, according to the Labor Department.
- “The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits rose to a two-month high last week,” according to Reuters.
- California, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, and Texas saw the highest increases in unemployment filings.
WHY THE UNEMPLOYMENT SPIKE HAPPENED:
- Analysts say the spike is due to layoffs in the auto industry, notes Forbes. “The spike is the result of carmakers temporarily shutting down their production line, which happens each year, said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.”
BACKGROUND:
- Economists had forecast only 350,000 applications for the latest week, according to Reuters.
