U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Rise to 262,000

By Scott Kanowsky 

Investing.com -- Jobless claims in the U.S. edged higher last week, in a sign of a potential loosening in the country's tight labor market.

Initial unemployment claims jumped to 262,000 from a downwardly revised 248,000 in the previous week, inching closer to its highest level since November. That figure was below economists' expectations of 263,000.

The biggest upticks in initial claims for the week ending July 30 were in the U.S. states of Connecticut, Oklahoma and North Carolina, while Massachusetts, Kentucky and Ohio saw the largest decreases.

The rolling four-week average for initial claims, which smooths out volatility in the weekly figures, also moved up to 252,000. Meanwhile, continuing claims increased by more than estimated to 1.428M, suggesting that some workers may be having a harder time finding new work after losing their old job.