Unemployment claims in Florida have increased slightly since last week. The unemployment rate remains relatively low. Over the past 4 weeks the state has averaged 5,400 new claims for unemployment a week. The U.S. Department of Labor estimated this week that there were 5,600 claims for unemployment filed in Florida last week. That’s up from the previous week, with 5,200 claims. In August, Florida had about 293,000 people out of work from a workforce of 10.7 million. That’s 2.7 percent unemployment. In comparison, the national unemployment rate was 3.7 percent.
“The new numbers, however, come as state economists have warned Florida’s real-estate market could slow as mortgage rates rise and housing-affordability issues increase. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve boosted interest rates by three-fourths of a percentage point — the fifth hike since March — in continued efforts to temper inflation.”
information from The News Service of Florida was used in this report