File photo for representational purposes
Applications for US jobless benefits fell last week after a run of increases, a slight reprieve in what otherwise has been a gradually cooling labor market.
Recurring jobless claims, a proxy for the number of people continuously receiving unemployment benefits, eased to 1.84 million in the week ended Nov. 11, according to Labor Department data out Wednesday. That was the first drop in two months.
Initial claims decreased to 209,000 in the week ending Nov. 18. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 227,000.
Despite the declines in claims, applications have been generally trending higher. During their meeting earlier this month, Federal Reserve officials said they’re looking for conditions to soften further to achieve their inflation goal, according to minutes released Tuesday.
