Initial Jobless Claims Highest in Seven Years

Washington, DC, Nov. 13, 2008--Initial jobless claims hit their highest level since September 2001, rising to 516,000 in the latest week, a further sign of how the U.S. labor market's struggling, the Labor Department reported Thursday.
 
For the week ended Nov. 8, initial claims climbed by 32,000 from last week's revised figure of 484,000.
The four-week average of new claims -- which measures the underlying trend in joblessness -- also hit a historic high, shooting up to 491,000. That's the highest since March 1991.
 
Continuing claims rose to 3.89 million in the week ended Nov. 1, up 65,000.
 
The four-week average of continuing claims was 3.79 million.

Both the figures for continuing claims and four-week continuing claims stood at the highest since 1983.
Unemployment benefits typically run out after 26 weeks for those who are eligible. A new law extends jobless benefits for an additional 13 weeks under a separate federal program.

Some economists are expecting the picture to worsen further, perhaps considerably. On Wednesday, economists at Wachovia said they don't expect the unemployment rate to peak until late in 2010 and at 9%.