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Initial jobless claims, a way to measure layoffs, sank by 22,000 to 222,000 in the week ended Oct. 14. That’s the lowest figure since March 1973 and well below the 244,000 MarketWatch forecast. The more stable monthly average of claims declined by 9,500 to 248,250, though it remains somewhat elevated because of the recent hurricanes.

* The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week. * The data was impacted by hurricanes Harvey and Irma. * Initial claims for state unemployment benefits declined 14,000. The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, but the data was impacted by hurricanes Harvey and Irma, making it difficult to get a clear pulse of the labor market. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits declined 14,000 to a seasonally adjusted 284,000 for the week ended Sept. 9, the Labor Department said on Thursday. A Labor Department official said hurricanes Harvey and Irma...

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits rose slightly last week, pointing to sustained labor market strength that should continue to support the economy. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased by 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 236,000 for the week ended Aug. 26, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Data for the prior week was revised to show 1,000 more applications received than previously reported. Claims have now been below 300,000, a threshold associated with a robust labor market, for 130 consecutive weeks. That is the longest such stretch since 1970, when the labor market was smaller. A...

New applications for unemployment benefits fell 8,000 to 237,000 in the first full week of June, the Department of Labor reported Thursday. Investors had expected 243,000 new jobless claims. Low jobless claims are a good sign. They indicate that layoffs are relatively rare and that laid-off workers are not showing up at state unemployment agencies to collect benefits. In recent months, jobless claims have scraped the lowest levels in decades, providing one of the most positive signs of the U.S. economy's health. At a press conference Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen said that the labor market appears to be...

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell to near a 44-year low last week, pointing to further tightening of the labor market even as economic growth appears to have remained moderate in the first quarter.

U.S. jobless claims jumped to the highest level since mid-June, the government said Thursday. The Labor Department said jobless claims in the week ending Dec. 17 rose a seasonally adjusted 21,000 to 275,000. Economists polled by MarketWatch expected claims of 258,000. The four-week average of claims, a less volatile indicator, rose by 6,000 to 263,750. ... The ratio of continuing claims to the total number of unemployed was 27% in November, compared to a low of 34% during the previous expansion. That’s an indication of fewer people eligible for unemployment insurance — perhaps, due to the rise of the so-called...

Having surged to six-month highs, initial jobless claims dropped modestly on the week but the smoother 4-week average that is broadly used pushed to new cycle highs at 285k - the highest since March 2015 confirming The Fed's concerns over the economy. This is a trend that is certainly not the friend of Janet and her friends... but we are sure this is all just transitory.  

New claims for US unemployment insurance benefits jumped to a seven-month high last week, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Initial jobless claims rose by 10,000 to 293,000 in the week ending January 16, the highest level since early July. But claims, a sign of the pace of layoffs, have remained below 300,000 since late February 2015 as the jobs market tightens. Analysts say volatility is typical in the first weeks of the year. The four-week moving average for claims rose by 6,500 to 285,000. A year ago it was 298,250. The US economy added 2.65 million jobs in 2015, the...

The yawning gap between job cuts (surging most since 2009) and initial jobless claims (hovering near 42 year lows) continues to grow as initial jobless claims collapse 7k this week to 255k - the lowest since 1973. Bear in mind, Goldman's explanation that jobless claims are useless in this part of the business cycle..."this does not signal a booming labor market." Charts: BloombergBut as Goldman Sachs confirms... "this does not represent a booming labor market"Although payroll employment growth has slowed in recent months, initial claims for unemployment insurance benefits remain very low. The four-week moving average of initial claims has...

Job cuts have already surpassed  last year's total, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas with the highest annual total since 2009, when nearly 1.3 million layoffs were announced at the tail-end of the recession... so how does the government explain the fact that initial jobless claims have once again re-tumbled back to close to 42-year lows... Initial claims dropped 13k this week to 263k - just shy of the lowest levels sicne 1973... As Job cuts soar... One of these is lying...   The third quarter ended with a surge in job cuts, as U.S.-based employers announced plans to shed 58,877 in...

In their coverage of government and other economic reports, the business press routinely tells readers that the figures they are relaying are "seasonally adjusted." That is, raw results are smoothed out to supposedly "remove normal, recurring variations" in data. There's one notable exception: The government's monthly employment report. As has been their habit for as long as I have been following these things, various Associated Press reports in the past several days (examples here, here and here) and at yesterday's New York Times failed to tag yesterday's reported gain in payroll jobs of 142,000 as "seasonally adjusted." There appears to...

The number of new applications for U.S. jobless benefits rose modestly last week and a gauge of the trend in claims fell, pointing to ongoing tightening in the labor market that could push the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 277,000 for the week ended Sept. 26, the Labor Department said on Thursday. It was the 30th straight week that claims remained below the 300,000 threshold, which is usually associated with a strengthening labor market. The four-week moving average of claims, a closely followed trend measure because it...

First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits decreased modestly in the week ended August 22nd, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday. The report said initial jobless claims edged down to 271,000, a decrease of 6,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 277,000. Economists had expected claims to dip to 270,000. With the drop, jobless claims partly offset the modest increases seen over the past weeks, although they remain above the more than forty-year low of 255,000 set in the week ended July 18th. Meanwhile, the Labor Department said the less volatile four-week moving average ticked...

The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week, but the trend remained consistent with solid labor market momentum that could keep the Federal Reserve on track to raise interest rates this year. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 4,000 to a seasonally adjusted 277,000 for the week ended Aug. 15, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Claims for the prior week were revised to show 1,000 fewer applications received than previously reported. Economists had forecast claims slipping to 272,000 last week. A Labor Department analyst said there were no special factors influencing the...

U.S. jobless claims rose again for a third straight week but the numbers still indicated that the labor market was still strengthening. The amount of Americans filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose again from the predicted 270,000 last week, but the numbers are still indicative of a strengthening labor market, the government said Thursday. Initial jobless claims, cited when assessing the pace of layoffs, increased by 5,000 to 274,000 for the week ended Aug. 8, the Labor Department revealed Thursday, reported Reuters. Claims for the previous week were adjusted to show 1,000 fewer applications than previously reported. Even though claims...

WASHINGTON -- Slightly more Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, but their numbers remain near historic lows in a sign that the job market is healthy. The Labor Department said Thursday that applications for jobless aid rose 3,000 to a seasonally adjusted 270,000. The four-week average, a less volatile measure, dropped 6,500 to 268,250. That average has fallen nearly 10 percent over the past year, close to levels last seen in 2000. "Initial claims for unemployment insurance have been below 300,000 for 22 straight weeks, the longest such stretch since 1973," said Gus Faucher, senior economist at PNC Financial...

The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits increased last week, but remained near cycle lows in a sign that the jobs market was gaining steam. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 267,000 for the week ended July 25, the Labor Department said Thursday. Claims for the prior week were unrevised at 255,000, which was the lowest level since November 1973. A Labor Department analyst said there were no special factors influencing the data and that only claims for Puerto Rico had been estimated. The four-week moving average of claims, considered a...

The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, pointing to a solid labor market. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 15,000 to a seasonally adjusted 281,000 for the week ended July 11, the Labor Department said on Thursday. The decline reversed the prior week's rise and ended three straight weeks of increases. Claims tend to be volatile during the summer when automakers normally shut assembly plants for annual retooling. However, some of the companies keep production running, which can throw off a model the government uses to smooth the data for...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New applications for U.S. unemployment insurance benefits rose last week to their highest level since February, suggesting some slowdown in the labor market recovery. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 15,000 to a seasonally adjusted 297,000 for the week that ended July 4, the U.S. Department of Labor said on Thursday. Even with the rise in claims, the latest report marks the 18th consecutive week of new filings below 300,000, which is considered consistent with a firming labor market. The previous week's claims were revised to 282,000, showing that 1,000 more people filed than initially reported....

WASHINGTON—The number of Americans applying for first-time unemployment benefits rose last week, but remained at a historically low level consistent with an improving labor market. Initial jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs across the economy, increased by 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 274,000 in the week ended May 16, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected 271,000 new claims. “U.S. labor market momentum remains solid in mid-May,” Barclays economist Jesse Hurwitz said in a note to clients. The prior week’s claims were left unrevised at 264,000. The Labor Department said no special factors...