The Labor Department said the number of Americans filing new jobless claims fell more than Wall Street expected for the week ended June 13. Weekly jobless claims dropped 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 267,000 and claims for the prior week, which rose more than expected, were unrevised. It was the 15th straight week that claims held below 300,000, which markets view as generic gauge of health in the labor market.
The Federal Reserve (FOMC) on Wednesday offered an upbeat assessment of the labor market, claiming that market indicators “suggests that underutilization of labor resources diminished somewhat.” However, a majority on the policy-making committee bailed on the idea of raising interest rates — which have been held at near zero since the recession — in the month of June. Instead, the FOMC set a goal of September, indicating that they do not believe the economy can handle the rate hike.
Still, the language was an improvement from April, when labor market slack was viewed as “little changed” by the FOMC.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims falling to 275,000 last week. A Labor Department analyst said there was nothing unusual in the state level data.
The four-week moving average of claims — which is widely considered a better measure of labor market trends as it irons out week-to-week volatility — fell 2,000 to 276,750 last week.
Though the firing rate decreased, Thursday’s claims report showed the number of people still receiving benefits after an initial week of aid remains at 2.22 million in the week ended June 6. That declined by 50,000.
