Jobless claims rise unexpectedly, cost of living up for 7th consecutive month (also unexpectedly)-Bloomberg

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2/17/11, "U.S. Initial Jobless Claims Rise 25,000 to 410,000 Last Week," Bloomberg

"More Americans than projected filed first-time claims for unemployment insurance last week, a sign the improvement in the labor market will take time to develop.
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Applications for jobless benefits increased by 25,000 to 410,000 in the week ended Feb. 12, exceeding the 400,000 median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, Labor Department figures showed today. The total number of people receiving unemployment insurance was little changed, while those collecting extended payments decreased.

• A reduction in firings by U.S. firms is needed to keep unemployment going down. Bigger job gains are needed to boost consumer spending, which accounts for 70 percent of the world’s largest economy.

“Conditions in the labor market will continue to be tenuous as firms look for a sustained pickup in sales,” Maxwell Clarke, chief U.S. economist at IDEAglobal in New York, said before the report. “Claims should remain at an elevated level for some time but should continue along a gradual downward path in the months to come.”

• Another Labor Department report showed the cost of living climbed for a seventh consecutive month in January,
  

led by higher prices for fuel and food that that may be starting to filter through to other goods and services.

The consumer-price index increased 0.4 percent for a second month,

• more than the 0.3 percent median increase estimate of economists surveyed

by Bloomberg. The so-called core rate, which excludes volatile food and fuel costs, rose 0.2 percent,

• the biggest gain since October 2009.

Jobless claims estimates in the Bloomberg survey of 47 economists ranged from 370,000 to 450,000. The Labor Department revised the prior week’s two-year low to 385,000 from 383,000.
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Today’s report covers the week the Labor Department surveys businesses to calculate the monthly payroll figures. The four- week moving average, a less volatile measure, rose to 417,750 from 416,000 the prior week. The average was also up from the 413,000 in last month’s survey week, indicating little letup in firings.

The number of people continuing to collect jobless benefits rose by 1,000 in the week ended Feb. 5 to 3.91 million.

• These figures do not include the number of workers receiving extended benefits under federal programs.

Those who’ve used up their traditional benefits and are now collecting emergency and extended payments decreased by about 85,000 to 4.5 million in the week ended Jan. 29."...

via Lucianne.com