A day earlier than usual due to the Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday, the Labor Department released a report on Wednesday showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly edged higher in the week ended November 17th.
The report said initial jobless claims rose to 224,000, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's upwardly revised level of 221,000.
Economists had expected jobless claims to slip to 215,000 from the 216,000 originally reported for the previous week.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.