Weekly jobless claims rise by 23,000

New applications for jobless aid rose by 23,000 last week, ending a weeks-long trend of declines, according to figures released by the Labor Department on Thursday.

For the week ending Feb. 12, seasonally adjusted initial claims reached 248,000, the data shows. The four-week moving average was 243,250 last week, 10,500 less than the revised average from the previous week.

The uptick in claims comes after the nation recently saw a three-week decline in applications for jobless aid.

Jobless claims lowered in November to levels seen prior to the start of the pandemic. But that trend temporarily made an about face in the weeks that followed amid a surge in coronavirus cases fueled by the spread of the omicron variant.

Data released by the Census Bureau in January found that millions of people missed work at the start of the year because they, or a person they cared for, came down with the illness.

Labor Department data also showed millions reported being unable to work last month due to a pandemic-related closure or lost business last month. The figure is about twice the level of 3.1 million the agency recorded in December.

However, monthly data released by the agency also showed the country was still able to make significant job gains last month, adding 467,000 jobs in January in the face of mounting concerns over the omicron wave’s impact on the labor market.