Jobless Claims/Inflation/Trade Deficit All Up

More great economic news from Obamaville.

Weekly jobless claims, headline inflation and the US trade deficit all moved higher, according to data released Thursday that posed more questions for the economic recovery.

The number of people filing new claims for unemployment insurance rose to a higher-than-expected 462,000 in the latest week, the Labor Department said on Thursday, while the number of people still collecting jobless benefits fell to an almost two-year low.

First-time jobless claims rose 13,000 in the week ended Oct. 9 from the prior week's upwardly revised 449,000 seasonally adjusted claims. The four-week average of first-time jobless benefits, which economists prefer because it smoothes out weekly fluctuations, rose 2,250 to 459,000.