A strengthening labor market remains an engine for U.S. growth as the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits dropped to the lowest since February, Labor Department data showed Thursday.
Highlights of Jobless Claims (Week Ended Aug. 12)
• Initial jobless claims decreased by 12k to 232k (est. 240k)
• Continuing claims fell by 3k to 1.953 mln in week ended Aug. 5 (data reported with one-week lag)
• Four-week average of initial claims, a less-volatile measure than the weekly figure, inched down to 240.5k from 241k in prior week
Key Takeaways
The government’s latest tally of filings, taken during the survey week for the monthly employment report, differs little from the average for the last several months and bodes well for August hiring figures. The claims data are close to the 227,000 reported in late February, which was the lowest since the early 1970s. Business managers, posting jobs at a record-breaking pace, have been less inclined to fire workers and more focused on picking up staff amid a dwindling pool of unemployed. A healthy job market, despite still-subdued wage gains, is helping to keep up consumer spending and broader U.S. growth.
Other Details
• Prior week’s reading of 244k was unrevised
• Unemployment rate among people eligible for benefits stayed unchanged at 1.4 percent
• No states had estimated claims last week
Content is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc. or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. If you would like to reproduce or redistribute any of the content found on MarketPulse, an award winning forex, commodities and global indices analysis and news site service produced by OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc., please access the RSS feed or contact us at info@marketpulse.com. Visit https://www.marketpulse.com/ to find out more about the beat of the global markets. © 2023 OANDA Business Information & Services Inc.