The number of people filing for unemployment benefits for the first time rose by 11,000 in the latest week, with 239,000 Initial Jobless Claims reported. There were also 1.81 million Continuing Jobless Claims filed, which is a decline of 13,000 from the previous week. This represents people who continue to receive benefits after their initial claim is filed.

What’s the bottom line? The four-week average of Initial Jobless Claims, which smooths out some of the weekly fluctuation, has hovered around 240,000 in recent weeks, a high not seen since November 2021. And while Continuing Claims can also be volatile from week to week, the overall trend has been higher with an increase of more than 500,000 since the low reached last September. These numbers speak to the challenges people are having as they search for new employment.