Local figures: Initial unemployment claims in Louisiana rose slightly for the week ending March 8, according to figures released Friday by the Louisiana Workforce Commission. After previously declining, initial claims grew 1% last week, to 1,419 claims filed. Continued claims dropped 3%. See the fu ll figures. New MSAs available: Beginning with the release of January 2025 employment data on March 17, 2025, the makeup of Louisiana’s Metropolitan Statistical Areas will be updated based on data from the 2020 Census. Assumption Parish is being added to the Baton Rouge MSA, while Iberia Parish is being removed from the Lafayette MSA. St. Tammany Parish is being removed from the New Orleans MSA and will be designated as its own MSA, Slidell-Mandeville-Covington. See a full roundup of the changes. Two-year low: U.S. consumer sentiment fell to a more than two-year low and long-term inflation expectations jumped by the most since 1993, illustrating growing apprehension about the economic impact of tariffs. The preliminary March sentiment index dropped to 57.9, the lowest level since November 2022, from 64.7 a month earlier, according to University of Michigan data issued Friday. Read more from Bloomberg. A subscription may be required. ...read more read less