WASHINGTON — New applications for U.S. jobless benefits unexpectedly fell last week while producer prices rebounded strongly in April, pointing to a tightening labor market and rising inflation that could spur the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in June.þþLabor market strength was also underscored by a sharp drop in the number of Americans on unemployment rolls to a 28-1/2-year low in the final week of April.þþÿThe best labor market in nearly thirty years should tell Fed officials that additional monetary stimulus is not required. We expect them to put another rate hike notch on their belts at the upcoming June meeting,ÿ said Chris Rupkey, chief economist at MUFG Union Bank in New York.þþInitial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 236,000 for the week ended May 6, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Economists had forecast first-time applications for jobless benefits rising to 245,000.þþClaims have now been below 300,000, a threshold associated with a healthy labor market, for 114 straight weeks. That is the longest such stretch since 1970, when the labor market was smaller. The labor market is close to full employment, with the unemployment rate at a near 10-year low of 4.4 percent.þþThe number of people still receiving benefits after an initial week of aid tumbled 61,000 to 1.92 million in the week ended April 29, the lowest level since November 1988.þþLabor market momentum, also marked by a sharp rebound in job growth in April, has left financial markets anticipating further monetary policy tightening from the Fed's June 13-14 policy meeting.þþThe U.S. central bank increased its benchmark overnight interest rate by 25 basis points in March and has forecast two more rate hikes this year. The economy created 211,000 job in April after adding only 79,000 positions in March.þþIn a second report on Thursday, the Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand increased 0.5 percent last month after slipping 0.1 percent in March.þþThe PPI increased 2.5 percent in the 12 months through April, the biggest gain since February 2012, after advancing 2.3 percent in March. Economists had forecast the PPI rising 0.2 percent and gaining 2.2 percent from a year ago.þþPrices for U.S. Treasuries fell on the claims and inflation data, while the dollar rose against a basket of currencies. U.S. stock index futures were marginally lower.
Source: NY Times
