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With the new year come more jobless claims for Americans

Last week we saw an increase in initial jobless claims filed by Americans, reaching its highest level since early November.

According to the Labor Department, the seasonally adjusted figure for the week ending on January 7th jumped up 6.4% to 399,000, compared to the prior week's number of 375,000.

Econoday surveyed different analysts for their predictions, with the average estimate being 375,000 new claims with a range of 352,000 to 405,000. However, economists still believe that we're in a strengthening job market and expanding economy. Over the past two months, initial unemployment claims have remained below this figure, with the end of December marking the lowest figures in three years.

In comparison, the four-week moving average, a less volatile and more reliable trend to measure, saw an increase of 7,750 claims to a total of 381,750. The seasonally adjusted figure for the insured unemployment rate kept steady at 2.9%, per the Labor Department.

Federal unemployment beneficiaries rose 110,000 Americans during the week ending on December 24th  to 7.33 million, compared to the prior week's total of 7.22 million.

The Labor Department also reported that nonfarm payroll employment rose for December and the nation's unemployment rate for the month dipped to 8.5%, the lowest rate in three years.

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