Bonds & Rates
Home›Bonds & Rates›Economy›Initial jobless claims fall to 197K as layoffs stay co…
Initial jobless claims fall to 197K as layoffs stay contained
The four-week moving average for continuing claims dipped from 1.723M to 1.711M even as continuing claims rose for the week ending Sept. 26.
US initial jobless claims fell from a revised 199K to 197K in the week ending October 3, coming in below the 200K consensus, according to Action Forex. The four-week moving average also declined from 200.5K to 198K, reinforcing the view that hiring has cooled without a sharp deterioration.
Initial claims remained well below the 233K level from the comparable week a year earlier, while continuing claims rose from a revised 1.699M to 1.716M for the week ending September 26, Action Forex reported. The insured unemployment rate held at 1.1%, and the four-week average of continuing claims fell from 1.723M to 1.711M.
Action Forex said the pattern suggests there is not yet clear evidence that returning to work is getting materially harder, despite the weekly increase in continuing claims. Overall, the report is consistent with a labor market that is stable rather than weakening abruptly, with the decline in initial claims indicating layoffs are contained.