US Jobless Claims Fell A Fourth Week During July 4 Holiday
The decline in initial claims suggests employers are reticent to let go of workers, but the ongoing rise in continuing claims indicates how difficult it is for out-of-work Americans to find a job.
Applications for US unemployment benefits fell for a fourth week to the lowest in two months during a period that included the Independence Day holiday.
Initial claims decreased by 5,000 to 227,000 in the week ended July 5. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 235,000 applications.
Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving benefits, rose to 1.97 million in the previous week, still the highest since late 2021, according to Labor Department data released Thursday. That was in line with the median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists.
New filings tend to be volatile around school summer breaks and federal holidays as temporary and seasonal workers cycle in and out of employment during these periods. The decline in initial claims suggests employers are reticent to let go of workers, but the ongoing rise in continuing claims indicates how difficult it is for out-of-work Americans to find a job.
The four-week moving average of new applications, a metric that helps smooth out volatility, fell to 235,500, the lowest since late May.
Before adjusting for seasonal factors, initial claims climbed 10,000 last week — led by Michigan, Tennessee and Ohio, where auto plants undergo summertime retooling for new models that can distort the data.
