Applications for jobless benefits fell by 8,000, a figure fewer than forecast, as Hurricane Sandy suppressed applications last week.
The figure dropped the national total to 355,000 for the week ending on the 3rd of November and boosted hopes that the nation’s labour market was still on course for a recovery. The unprecedented super storm disrupted vast swathes on the American Northeast causing fluctuations in the data recorded. One state reported that the loss of power caused by the storm suppressed filings.
The aftermath of the storm has seen hundreds made homeless, and it is expected that those people who have lost their jobs thanks to the storms impact have been unable to sign on due to continuingly poor weather. The storm killed at least 121 people in the United States and Canada and left more than 8 million homes and businesses without electricity in the Northeast.
A early-winter storm has added to the Northeast’s misery as it brought strong wins, heavy rain and snow to the region still struggling to recover from Sandy’s aftermath. Thursday morning saw the population having to struggle to work and up to 60,000 homes and businesses lost power adding to the 640,000 still affected from last week’s hurricane.
“When you see bad weather, there’s usually a drop in claims, and then you typically see a rebound in the next few weeks,” said Scoot Brown, chief economist at Raymond James & Associates Inc., who correctly forecast the number of initial filings. “Underneath the surface, job destruction has been trending very low. Layoffs aren’t the problem – it’s the relatively weak pace of job creation.”
The figures are expected to see an increase next week as the backlog of people made unemployed by the storm begin to sign on. Analysts are predicting that the full impacts of the storm could not be seen for another three or four weeks.
Other data released on Thursday showed that the USA’s trade deficit saw unexpected shrinkage in September with the gap falling to $41.5 billion, the smallest level since December 2010.
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