INSTANT VIEW: Jobless claims down 12K; ongoing claims at record

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless aid fell 12,000 last week, Labor Department data showed on Thursday, while so-called continued claims rose to a fresh record as the recession battered employment.

KEY POINTS: * Initial claims for state unemployment insurance benefits declined to a seasonally adjusted 631,000 in the week ended May 16 from a revised 643,000 the prior week, the Labor Department said. * New claims have declined in three of the last four weeks. * Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast 630,000 new claims versus a previously reported count of 637,000 the week before. * The number of people staying on the benefits roll after drawing an initial week of aid increased by 75,000 to a more-then-forecast 6.662 million in the week ended May 9, the most recent week for which data is available. Analysts estimated so-called continued claims would be 6.65 million.

COMMENTS:

KEITH HEMBRE, CHIEF ECONOMIST, FAF ADVISORS, MINNEAPOLIS:

"To me the important number is continuing claims, which continue to steadily go up. It's not a surprise with the auto situation. They will likely head higher. It will likely cause to upward pressure on the unemployment rate to approach 10 percent, which would be the highest level since the early 1980s."

JOHN RYDING, CHIEF ECONOMIST, RDQ ECONOMICS, NEW YORK:

"I am pleased that we've got the four-week average in jobless claims beginning to move down again but I still think we need a more convincing decline to signal from the jobless claims perspective that the recession has bottomed out.

"I think these numbers tell us we're headed in that direction but we need a more convincing decline."

TIM GHRISKEY, CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER, SOLARIS ASSET MANAGEMENT, BEDFORD HILLS, NEW YORK: