The Labor Department released a report on Thursday showing a modest increase in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended October 22nd.
The report said initial jobless claims inched up to 217,000, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 214,000. Economists had expected initial jobless claims to edge up to 220,000.
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May 01, 2026 15:54 ET Central banks dominated the economics news flow this week with almost all major ones announcing their latest policy decisions and many boosted expectations for a rate hike in June. In other news, several countries released the preliminary data for first quarter economic growth. In the U.S., comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell were also in focus as his term ends this month.