The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose sharply to 236,000 for the week ending Dec. 6, an increase of 44,000 from the previous week’s 192,000.

The new claims figure exceeded analysts’ forecast of 213,000 and marks a significant jump, though claims remain within a historically healthy range.

Driving the news: The prior week’s data was likely distorted by the Thanksgiving holiday, accounting for some of the volatility in the numbers. • Jobless benefits applications act as a proxy for layoffs and are closely watched as near real-time indicators of labor market health. • Although layoffs remain relatively mild, the labor market shows signs of underlying weakness, prompting the Federal Reserve to cut its benchmark lending rate by a quarter-point for the third strai

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