Weekly jobless claims, or first-time claims for unemployment benefits reported by the Labor Department.
The Labor Department said Thursday weekly jobless claims rose 15,000 to a seasonally adjusted 258,000 for the week ending March 18. The previous week’s level was revised up by 2,000 from 241,000 to 243,000.
However, the four-week moving average–widely considered a better gauge–came in at 240,000, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was also revised up by 1,750 from 237,250 to 239,000.
Further, continuing claims, which weekly data lags by roughly a week, showed significant improvement, falling 39,000 in the March 11 week to 2.000 million with this 4-week average down 32,000 to 2.027 million. The unemployment rate for insured workers (which excludes job leavers and re-entrants) is at a new low, at 1.4 percent for a 1 tenth downtick.
The report also includes a large downward revision to just 210,000 for the week of February 25, which is the best number since 1969. This indicates labor is in demand and another very healthy jobs report for March in on the way.
“The claims data do not suggest a clear shift in labor market conditions between the reference periods for the February and March reports,” said Daniel Silver, an economist at JPMorgan in New York.
Released On 3/23/2017 8:30:00 AM For wk3/18, 2017
| Prior | Prior Revised | Consensus | Consensus Range | Actual | |
| New Claims – Level | 241 K | 243 K | 240 K | 237 K to 245 K | 258 K |
| 4-week Moving Average – Level | 237.25 K | 239.00 K | 240.00 K | ||
| New Claims – Change | -2 K | -6 K | 15 K |
