U.S. jobless claims hold at historically low level of 217,000

Applications for U.S. unemployment benefits held at historically low levels last week, the latest evidence of a resilient labor market.

Initial claims were unchanged at 217,000 in the week ending March 2, according to Labor Departweek ment data released Thursday. That was in line with the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists.

In the decade before the COVID-19 pandemic, such claims averaged more than 300,000 a week.

Continuing claims, a proxy for the total number of people receiving unemployment benefits, ticked up to 1.91 million in the

ending Feb. 24.

While initial claims have remained subdued, recurring applications have been trending higher in the past six months, suggesting it might be taking longer for people who lost their jobs to find a new one.

Looking ahead, economists expect the labor market to moderate in coming months as stillelevated prices and soaring borrowing costs take a toll on firms’ expansion plans.

Weekly claims tend to be choppy. The four-week moving average, which smooths out some of that volatility, was also little changed at 212,250 last week.

The unadjusted data on initial claims, which doesn’t take into account seasonal influences, rose to 213,152. New York accounted for the majority of the increase.

U.S. companies announced some 84,600 job cuts in February, according to data out Thursday by executive coaching firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Although technology and financial companies are still the primary sectors shedding jobs, more industries are now trimming their workforce.