AP: Jobless Claims Rise Sharply Last Week

Jobless Claims Rise Sharply Last Week
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Filed at 1:24 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The number of new people signing up for jobless benefits last week rose sharply, suggesting that the labor market is still trying to gain traction after being knocked by a trio of Gulf Coast hurricanes.

The Labor Department reported Wednesday that new applications for unemployment insurance jumped by a seasonally adjusted 30,000 to 335,000 for the week ending Nov. 19. In the prior week, new filings for jobless benefits registered a large decline.

Last week's increase left claims at their highest point since the middle of October. Economists were expecting claims to total around 312,000.

Hurricane-related job losses edged up last week to 21,000 -- but are well below their peak posted in September. Last week's increase brought the total number of layoffs related to Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma over the last 12 weeks to 582,400.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Economy.html?pagewanted=print