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First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits jumped by much more than expected in the week ended December 7th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday.
The Labor Department said initial jobless claims surged up to 252,000, an increase of 49,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 203,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to edge up to 213,000.
With the much bigger than expected increase, jobless claims reached their highest level since hitting 257,000 in September of 2017.
