Claims Rose Less Than Usual Last Week Because of Sandy, Now Down 11.5% Year to Year

The Labor Department reported that seasonally adjusted (SA) first time claims for unemployment fell by 8,000 to 355,000 from an unrevised 363,000 in the advance report for the week ended November 3, 2012. This beat the consensus estimate of 370,000, but I would take this number with a grain of salt. Superstorm Sandy depressed claims in the Northeast, particularly in New York and New Jersey. Wall Street Examiner (http://s.tt/1sC9V)