Despite a strong employment scene, U.S. jobless claims rose to their highest levels in nearly five months around Memorial Day, with 27,000 claims submitted, according to a report from the Labor Department released on June 9.
Claims for the week ending June 4 totaled 229,000—the highest since mid-January, well ahead of the 210,000 Dow Jones estimate, as the labor market still remains tight.
The four-week moving average for continuing claims remains below average at 1.306 million at the end of last month, the lowest level since Jan. 10, 1970, when unemployment rolls stood at 1.32 million.
The insured unemployment rate held at a record low 0.9 percent at the end of May, while unadjusted claims also rose by 1,008 to 184,604 last week….