India, Aug. 21 -- First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose by much more than expected in the week ended August 16th, according to a repot released by the Labor Department on Thursday.
The report said initial jobless claims climbed to 235,000, an increase of 11,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 224,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 225,000.
"The latest rise in initial jobless claims hints at some new softening in labor market conditions, but we can't infer anything conclusive from one week's data, particularly in a week when seasonal factors lent an upside bias to the headline figure," said Nancy Vanden Houten, Lead U.S. Economist at Oxford Economics.
The Labor Department said the less vo...