WASHINGTON, Oct 2 - The number of Americans lining up to claim first-time jobless benefits rose in the latest week, the government said on Thursday, but about half of the increase was due to disruption from Hurricane Isabel. First-time filings for state jobless benefits climbed 13,000 to 399,000 in the week ended Sept. 27, the Labor Department said, slightly higher than the 395,000 expected by analysts. Labor said the rise in claims was partly because those seeking benefits in areas hit by the hurricane were unable to file during the previous week when unemployment offices were closed. Economists said that made it difficult to draw many conclusions from the report. "We probably need to average last week and this week together and if you do that, it still shows a lower level of claims than what we had seen over the summer and last spring so it shows some modest improvement in the labor market, but still not significant improvement," said Gary Thayer, chief economist at A.G. Edwards & Sons in St. Louis, Missouri.
For the second week in a row, claims stayed just under 400,000. Economists see claims over that key level to be a sign the labor market is deteriorating. The closely watched four-week moving average, seen as a more reliable gauge of the jobs picture because it smooths out weekly fluctuations, fell 5,000 to 403,500. However, the report showed jobless workers having a tough time finding new jobs. The number of unemployed on the benefit rolls after claiming an initial week of aid jumped by 62,000 to 3.67 million in the week ended Sept. 20 -- the highest since late June. A four-week average of that barometer also moved up. Financial markets will be looking to Friday's payrolls report for a more comprehensive look at the nation's sluggish labor market, which has lagged the economic recovery. Recent data on the U.S. economy has been mixed bag, and economists are predicting America is stuck in a jobless recovery. Analysts polled by are expecting the economy to have lost 30,000 jobs in September after shedding 93,000 in August. The unemployment rate is seen climbing to 6.2 percent from 6.1 percent in the previous month.//