Last week there were 212,000 unemployment claims, according to US government figures. The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week, as labor market conditions gradually relax.
Consequently, S&P 500 futures rose 0.6%, NASDAQ futures rose 0.8% and Dow futures rose 0.5%.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased by 9,000 to a seasonally adjusted 221,000 for the week ending March 30, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Notably Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 214,000 claims in the last week.
Worker shortages persist in industries such as construction. Although layoffs rose to a 14-month high in March, job cuts were little changed compared to the same period last year. The resilience of the labor market is strengthening the economy, with gross domestic product growing at a brisk annualized pace of 3.4% in the fourth quarter.
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Growth estimates for the first quarter are as high as a 2.8% pace. That strength, combined with still high inflation, could cause the Federal Reserve to delay a long-awaited interest rate cut this year. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell reiterated on Wednesday, as Ámbito reported, that the US central bank has time to deliberate on its first rate cut, in a gesture towards the resistance of the economy and high inflation.
Since March 2022, the Fed has increased its policy rate by 525 basis points to the current range of 5.25%-5.50%. According to a Reuters poll, payroll is likely Nonfarm jobs increased by 200,000 last month after increasing by 275,000 in February. The unemployment rate is expected to remain unchanged at 3.9%.
Source: Ambito
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