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The claims for
unemployment insurance in the U.S. tumbled last week on effects caused by
Hurricane Sandy. Meanwhile, the number of applicants for jobless benefits
dropped by 8,000 to 355,000. However, this might be due to the loss of
electricity and bad weather conditions after outliving the storm, and experts say the true picture would
be seen after a month. According to estimates, unemployment claims will
surge to 365,000 in the next weeks.The unemployment rate of those entitled for jobless benefits
slumped to 2.4% two weeks ago.
"When you see bad weather, there's usually a drop in claims, and then you typically see a rebound in the next few weeks. Underneath the surface, job destruction has been trending very low. Layoffs aren't the problem -it's the relatively weak pace of job creation," said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James & Associates.