By Gabriel T. Rubin
The number of people filing for unemployment benefits hovered around lowest levels in five decades last week as firms struggle to remain fully-staffed amid a resurgent pandemic.
Initial jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, totaled a seasonally-adjusted 207,000 for the week that ended Jan. 1, the Labor Department said Thursday. The four-week average for claims, which smooths out volatility, was 204,500. That was a slight increase from last month's level, which was the lowest since 1969.
Write to Gabriel T. Rubin at gabriel.rubin@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
01-06-22 0854ET
