Unemployment claims in Florida decreased for the third week in a row after the jobless rate ticked up in July.
The U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday estimated 5,492 first-time unemployment claims were filed in Florida last week, down from 5,754 during the week that ended Aug. 12.
Over the past four weeks, the state has averaged 6,039 initial claims, with a high of 6,659 during the week that ended July 29.
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The Florida Department of Commerce last week said Florida had a 2.7 percent unemployment rate in July, up from a 2.6 percent rate that had remained the same since January.
The July rate reflected 295,000 Floridians qualified as out of work from a workforce of 11.08 million.
Nationally, an estimated 230,000 claims were filed last week, down 10,000 from the week that ended Aug. 12. The national unemployment rate was 3.5 percent in July.
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