Jobless Claims Up Moderately, Is This a Sign of a Slowing Labor Market?

<p>&nbsp;The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose modestly last week as the labor market continued to show few signs of a significant slowdown.</p><p><br /></p><p>Initial claims for jobless benefits rose by 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 217,000 for the week ended Oct. 28, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Economists on the other hand even predicted 210,000 claims for the latest week.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Although the labor market cooled slightly, market conditions remained strong, indicating sustained economic strength. The government reported on Wednesday that there were 1.5 job vacancies for every unemployed person in September.</p><p><br /></p><p>The US central bank kept interest rates on hold on Wednesday but left the door open to further increases in borrowing costs in response to economic resilience. Since March 2022, the Federal Reserve has set the policy rate by 525 basis points to the current range of 5.25%-5.50%.</p>