Jobless claims climb, mark three-month weekly high

In the week ending Dec. 12, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 885,000, an increase of 23,000 from the previous week’s revised level.

The previous week’s level was revised up by 9,000 from 853,000 to 862,000. The 4-week moving average was 812,500, an increase of 34,250 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was revised up by 2,250 from 776,000 to 778,250.

Advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 3.8 percent for the week ending Dec. 5, a decrease of 0.1 percentage point from the previous week’s unrevised rate.

The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending Dec. 5 was 5,508,000, a decrease of 273,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week’s level was revised up 24,000 from 5,757,000 to 5,781,000.

The 4-week moving average was 5,726,250, a decrease of 215,500 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was revised up by 6,000 from 5,935,750 to 5,941,750.