?States reported that 204,000 workers filed for new unemployment benefits during the week ending Dec. 31, 2022, a decrease of 19,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The number of workers continuing to claim unemployment benefits—1.69 million—fell back under its pre-pandemic level of 1.7 million.
The labor market is strong despite the continued announcement of layoffs and a slow reduction of job openings. Layoffs, such as those announced this week at Amazon and Salesforce have primarily been contained in sectors impacted by higher interest rates or diminished demand, including technology, housing and finance.
ADP reported this morning that private payrolls in December rose by 235,000, well ahead of estimates despite the Federal Reserve’s attempts to slow down the economy. On Friday, the Department of Labor will report on how many jobs U.S. employers added last month, the unemployment rate and wage gains for the month.
