–Special Factors Boost Claims; Spring Break In NY, New Oregon Program
–No Weather Effects Reported In Current Week; Auto Claims Were Up

By Kevin Kastner and Ian McKendry

WASHINGTON (MNI) – Initial claims for U.S. state unemployment
benefits jumped by 43,000 to 474,000 in the April 30 week to its highest
level since August, but the increase was driven by special factors, the
U.S. Labor Department reported Thursday.

According to a Labor Department analyst, seasonal factors had
expected a 3.1%, or roughly 12,000, decline in unadjusted claims.
Instead, unadjusted claims surged 6.4%, or 25,006, to 412,873.
Unadjusted claims were at a level of 399,350 in the comparable week a
year ago.

The analyst noted three special factors that impacted this week’s
claims.

First, the timing of spring break in New York state was different
than seasonal adjustment factors has expected, so the additional
unadjusted claims resulting from the temporary layoffs were not offset
by the seasonal factors. This was the largest special factor in the
April 30 week.

Second, the state of Oregon started a new emergency benefits
program that, while not normally included in the national claims data,
did bring workers in the regular claims program as part of the
enrollment. This boosted unadjusted initial claims from that state for
this week.

Third, there were additional claims that can be attributed to auto
retooling. This week’s addition of these claims was larger than it had
been in recent weeks, the analyst said.

On the other hand, there were no real weather effects in the
current week’s data, the analyst said.

The four-week moving average rose 22,250 to 431,250 in the April 30
week, the highest level since the November 27, 2010 week.

Economists surveyed by Market News International had expected
initial claims to come in at 410,000 in the current week, down 19,000
from the originally reported 429,000 level in the previous week. The
April 23 week’s level was revised up to 431,000.

In the April 23 week, continuing claims rose by 74,000 to
3,733,000. Unadjusted continuing claims fell by 31,825 to 3,751,962 in
the April 23 week and were well below the 4671,227 level reported a year
earlier.

The state data for the April 23 week show that 34 states reported a
decline in claims, while only 19 reported increases. However, the
increases were larger and were led by sharp gains in New Jersey and New
Hampshire, which both reported larger layoffs in transportation as well
as other industries.

The seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate rose to 3.0% in
the April 23 week from 2.9% in the previous week, but was still well
below the 3.6% reported in the comparable week a year earlier.

The unemployment rate among the insured labor force is well below
that reported monthly by the Labor Department because claims are
approved for the most part only for job losers, not the job leavers and
labor force reentrants included in the monthly report.

The Labor Department said that the level of unadjusted Emergency
Unemployment Compensation benefits claims fell by 718 in the April 16
week, bringing that category to 3,447,542. Extended benefits claims fell
by 42,143 to 674,171, not seasonally adjusted in the same week.

The Labor Department reported that a total of 8,014,919 persons
claimed unemployment benefits in the April 16 week, a decline of 171,547
from the 8,186,466 claims reported in the previous week and well below
the 10,524,871 persons in the comparable week a year ago. These data are
not seasonally adjusted, and include regular state claims, federal
employee claims, new veterans claims, the EUC and extended benefits
programs, state additional benefits, and STC/Workshare claims.

** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **

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