US Initial Jobless Claims Rise To Highest Level Since June

Applications for US unemployment benefits rose to the highest since June, adding to evidence that the labor market is cooling.

Initial claims increased by 8,000 to 237,000 in the week ended Aug. 30. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 230,000 applications.

Companies have grown more hesitant about hiring while assessing the economic impact from President Donald Trump’s policies. Hiring plans fell to the weakest level for any August on record in data from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas going back to 2009, while intended job cuts rose.

The four-week moving average of new jobless claims, a metric that helps smooth out volatility, rose to 231,000, the highest since July. Before adjusting for seasonal factors, initial applications also rose last week. Connecticut and Tennessee saw the largest increases.

Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving benefits, were little changed at 1.94 million in the previous week, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.

Hiring at US firms slowed last month, according to ADP Research data released earlier Thursday. The Federal Reserve and investors will get a more complete update on the health of the labor market Friday with the release of the government’s August employment report. Economists forecast another month of tepid job growth and an uptick in the unemployment rate.