Forexpros – The number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week fell more-than-expected, while the previous week’s number was revised higher, 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 June 30 fell by 14,000 to a seasonally adjusted 374,000, compared to expectations for a decline of 3,000 to 385,000.
The previous week’s figure was revised up to 388,000 from a previously reported 386,000.
Jobless claims have remained below 400,000, a level historically associated with an improving labor market, in 34 of the past 36 weeks, though lately claims have been pushing higher from the 350,000 associated with above-average job growth.
Continuing jobless claims in the week ended June 23 rose to 3.306 million from a revised 3.302 million. Analysts had expected continuing claims to decline to 3.300 million.
The four-week moving average was 385,750, a decrease of 1,500 from the previous week’s revised average of 387,250.
The monthly average is seen as a more accurate gauge of labor trends because it reduces volatility in the week-to-week data.
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar held on to sharp gains against the euro, with EUR/USD tumbling 0.95% to trade at 1.2408.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock index futures remained higher after the release of the data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to an increase of 0.1% at the open, S&P 500 futures indicated a gain of 0.15%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures signaled a modest 0.05% advance.
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