US initial jobless claims and three-month moving average
- Prior week 240K revise 2241K
- US initial jobless claims versus 235K estimate
- 4 week moving average initial jobless claims 228.75K versus 227.0K last week
- Continuing claims 1.608M versus 1.573M estimate. Prior month 1.551M
- 4 week moving average continuing claims 1.539M versus 1.509M last week
- The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending November 19 were in Illinois (+6,586), California (+4,423), Georgia (+3,717), Michigan (+3,031), and Minnesota (+2,896),
- The decreases were reported in Montana (-318), North Carolina (-133), and Arkansas (-131).
The scare from last week where the claims rose to 241K has been reversed in the current week. Perhaps seasonal issue? Or we wait till next week to see if there is any deterioration. Earlier today, the challenger layoffs came in at .8 35K up from 33843K last month. The US nonfarm payroll data will be released tomorrow with expectations of around 200 K. The unemployment rate is expected at 3.7%. Last month NFP rose by 261K.