U.S. jobless claims drop less than expected

Economic Indicators

The number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week fell slightly less than expected but remained in territory consistent with a firming labor market, official data showed on Thursday.

In a report, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending August 6 decreased by 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 266,000 from the previous week’s total of 267,000, which was revised from the initial read of 269,000.

Analysts had expected jobless claims to drop by 4,000 to 265,000 last week.

First-time jobless claims below the 300,000-level are usually associated with a firming labor market.

Continuing jobless claims in the week ended July 30 increased more than expected to 2.155 million from 2.141 million in the preceding week, which was revised from the original figure of 2.138 million.

Analysts had expected continuing claims to rise to 2.140 million.

Source by Investing.com