The U.S. Department of Labor announced on June 5 (local time) that initial jobless claims for the week of May 25–31 reached 247,000, an increase of 8,000 from the previous week. This marks the highest number of new claims since the first week of October last year and exceeds the 236,000 forecast by experts surveyed by Dow Jones. The rise in claims appears to have been influenced in part by the Memorial Day holiday during the reporting period.

Meanwhile, continuing claims—those filed by people receiving unemployment benefits for two weeks or more—decreased slightly. For the week of May 18–24, continuing claims totaled 1.904 million, down 3,000 from the previous week. Amid growing concerns that the Trump administration’s tariff policies could drive up unemployment, Wall Street is closely watching labor market indicators for signs of broader economic trends.

(KBS News, June 5, 2025)