Applications for jobless claims up slightly last week

Associated Press/Matt Ott

Updated: Dec 22, 2022 / 07:52 AM CST

FILE – A woman passes a hiring sign in front of a Bob’s Stores location, in Attleboro, Mass., Thursday, June 2, 2022. On Thursday the Labor Department reports on the number of people who applied for unemployment benefits last week. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)

Mortgage Calculator

This calculator helps you estimate your monthly mortgage payment. It adds up the loan payment (principal + interest), property tax, and insurance. The loan payment is spread out over the years of your loan term.

Loan Amount ($):

This is the total amount you're borrowing from the bank.

Annual Interest Rate (%):

This is the yearly interest rate on your loan.

Loan Term (years):

This is how long you'll take to repay the loan.

Annual Property Tax ($):

This is the yearly tax you pay on your property.

Annual Homeowners Insurance ($):

This is the yearly cost to insure your home.

Monthly Payment Breakdown

Principal and Interest: $

Property Tax: $

Homeowners Insurance: $

Total Estimated Monthly Payment: $

WASHINGTON (AP) — Slightly more Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week as the labor market continues to show strength even as the Federal Reserve has tried for nearly a year to slow the economy by raising its main lending rate.

Applications for jobless claims for the week ending Dec. 17 inched up by 2,000 to 216,000 from the previous week’s 214,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Jobless claims are generally viewed as a representation of layoffs.

The four-week moving average of claims, which smooths out some of the week-to-week swings, fell by 6,250 to 221,750.

About 1.67 million people were receiving jobless aid the week that ended Dec. 10, about 6,000 fewer than the week before.

Despite the Fed’s attempt to fight stubbornly high inflation by raising interest rates to cool the economy, American workers are still experiencing extraordinary job security.