Jobless claims rise more than expected
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose more than expected last week while those remaining on benefit rolls hit a four-year high, the government said on Thursday.
Initial claims for state unemployment insurance benefits jumped to 384,000 in the week ended June 7 from a revised 359,000 for the prior week, the Labor Department said.
Analysts polled by Reuters were expecting 370,000 in new claims, up from the 357,000 originally reported in the earlier week.
The four-week average of new jobless claims, which is considered a more accurate measure of employment trends since it evens out weekly volatility, climbed to 371,500 from a revised 369,000 in the prior week.
The number of people remaining on the benefits rolls after drawing an initial week of aid rose 58,000 to a greater-than-expected 3.139 million, a four-year high, in the week ended May 31, the most recent week for which data is available.
It was the seventh straight week claims were above 3 million, evidence that unemployed workers are having a hard time finding a job.
Analysts were expecting so-called continued claims to rise to 3.12 million.
(Reporting by Mark Felsenthal; Editing by Tom Hals)
