Initial Jobless Claims

The number of people claiming unemployment benefits in the US fell by 1,000 from the previous week in the last full week of June, the lowest in five weeks, and below market expectations of 220,000. Meanwhile, continuing claims, which are seen as a gauge of outstanding unemployment in the US, rose by 2,000 from to 1,814,000 in the third week of June, the highest in three months, but below the downwardly revised value that was estimated by the Department of Labor previously. The claim counts were higher than those observed in the start of the second quarter, but remained robust on historical standards, maintaining the trend of low firing and low hiring. Meanwhile, initial claims filed by federal employees, which have been under scrutiny due the administration's efforts in decreasing the number of public workers, rose by 13 to 44.