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Enviado: 24/6/2004 13:31U.S. May durable goods orders down 1.4%
WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) - Orders for new durable goods fell for the second straight month in May.
Orders for goods that last more than three years fell 1.4 percent to $189.1 billion, the Commerce Department said Thursday.
The decline was unexpected. Wall Street economists had forecast a 1.4 percent gain in May durable goods orders.
Shipments of durables fell 0.7 percent while unfilled orders rose 0.4 percent.
New orders fell a revised 2.6 percent in April, compared with the previous estimate of a 3.2 percent decline.
U.S. weekly jobless claims rise
WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) -- The number of people filing for unemployment insurance rose in the latest week, the Labor Department said Thursday.
Initial weekly jobless claims rose 13,000 to 349,000, while the four-week average of initial claims rose 1,000 to 344,250.
Economists prefer the four-week average over the more volatile weekly number, which is subject to large revisions and can be skewed by one-time factors such as weather or holidays.
In fact, a department official said this week's figure may show an exaggerated increase following last week's decline, which was sharper than it would have been because state unemployment offices were closed in observance of the funeral of former President Ronald Reagan.
WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) - Orders for new durable goods fell for the second straight month in May.
Orders for goods that last more than three years fell 1.4 percent to $189.1 billion, the Commerce Department said Thursday.
The decline was unexpected. Wall Street economists had forecast a 1.4 percent gain in May durable goods orders.
Shipments of durables fell 0.7 percent while unfilled orders rose 0.4 percent.
New orders fell a revised 2.6 percent in April, compared with the previous estimate of a 3.2 percent decline.
U.S. weekly jobless claims rise
WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) -- The number of people filing for unemployment insurance rose in the latest week, the Labor Department said Thursday.
Initial weekly jobless claims rose 13,000 to 349,000, while the four-week average of initial claims rose 1,000 to 344,250.
Economists prefer the four-week average over the more volatile weekly number, which is subject to large revisions and can be skewed by one-time factors such as weather or holidays.
In fact, a department official said this week's figure may show an exaggerated increase following last week's decline, which was sharper than it would have been because state unemployment offices were closed in observance of the funeral of former President Ronald Reagan.