The number of new claims for jobless benefits rose last week, but the string of weeks with fewer than 300,000 claims extended to the longest period since 2000.
Initial claims for unemployment benefits increased by 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 290,000 in the week ended Nov. 8, the Labor Department said Thursday. That was above the 281,000 claims forecast by economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal and returned them to their highest level since late September. Still, claims have been under 300,000 for nine consecutive weeks.
Employers added 214,000 jobs to payrolls in October, the Labor Department’s jobs report showed last week, putting the economy on pace to post the best yearly gain in employment since 1999.
The steady job growth has pushed the nation’s unemployment rate down to 5.8 percent, closer to a level many economists consider healthy.
But a large share of the new jobs are in low-paying professions or in part-time positions. That has been one factor constraining incomes and restraining consumer spending.
