Global| Sep 15 2005Hurricane Katrina Caused Jobless Insurance Claims To Surge
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Initial claims for unemployment insurance surged 71,000 to 398,000 from the prior week. Consensus expectations had been for a rise to 345,000. The Labor Department indicated that at least 68,000 of the new claims were directly related [...]
Initial claims for unemployment insurance surged 71,000 to 398,000 from the prior week. Consensus expectations had been for a rise to 345,000.
The Labor Department indicated that at least 68,000 of the new claims were directly related to Hurricane Katrina and that number will most likely be revised upward next week as state workers make their way to distant relief shelters.
The four-week moving average of initial claims rose to 340,750 (0.6% y/y).
Continuing claims for unemployment insurance rose 20,000 following a deepened 28,000 decline the week prior.
The insured unemployment rate remained at its four-year low of 2.0% for the ninth consecutive week.
The Recession of 2001 and Unemployment Insurance Financing from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York is available here.
| Unemployment Insurance (000s) | 09/10/05 | 09/03/05 | Y/Y | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Claims | 398 | 327 | 19.5% | 343 | 402 | 404 |
| Continuing Claims | -- | 2,590 | -9.3% | 2,926 | 3,531 | 3,570 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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