<H3>• U.S. Initial Unemployment [Jobless] Claims Up 16k </H3>

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In the week ending March 23, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 357,000, an increase of 16,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 341,000 and down 1.7% from the same week a year ago. The 4-week moving average was 343,000, an increase of 2,250 from the previous week's revised average of 340,750. Click on chart to enlarge The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.4 percent for the week ending March 16, unchanged from the prior week's unrevised rate. The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending March 9 were in Alaska (5.8), Puerto Rico (4.5), Rhode Island (4.1), New Jersey (4.0), Connecticut (3.9), Montana (3.9), Pennsylvania (3.9), Wisconsin (3.8), California (3.7), and Massachusetts (3.7). The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending March 16 were in California (+3,007), Virginia (+1,165), Mississippi (+485), North Dakota (+54), and Puerto Rico (+38), while the largest decreases were in Pennsylvania (-2,497), New York (-2,116), Georgia (-2,023), North Carolina (-1,340), and Ohio (-1,192). Note: “Insured unemployment rate” refers to individuals who are unemployed and receiving UC benefits. Source: USDOL-BLS

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