Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Jump to 263,000

First-time claims for unemployment benefits rose by 27,000 to 263,000 in the week ended Sept. 6, the Labor Department said Thursday.

This was the highest level of claims since October 2021.

Economists polled by Econoday had estimated new claims would decline by 3,000 to 234,000 from the preliminary estimate for the previous week. The prior week’s estimate was revised down by 1,000 to 236,000.

The unexpected jump in initial claims adds to pressure on the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates at its meeting next week. Derivatives based on Fed policy suggest a 90 percent chance of a 25-basis point reduction, the CME’s Fedwatch Tool indicated Thursday.

Ongoing claims, which are reported with a week delay, were unchanged from the downwardly revised previous level of 1,939,000.