New unemployment claims are compiled weekly to show the number of individuals who filed for unemployment insurance for the first time. An increasing (decreasing) trend suggests a deteriorating (improving) labor market. The four-week moving average of new claims smoothes out weekly volatility. Why Investors Care
| Released on 5/29/08 For wk 5/24 2008 | ||||||||||||
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Highlights
Initial jobless claims were little changed in the May 24 week at a 372,000 level which points to continued but not deepening weakness in the labor market. But continuing claims may be pointing to greater weakness, up 36,000 for the May 17 week to 3.104 million for a level that is about 100,000 higher than April levels. There are no special factors distorting the data. Today's data points to another month of weak results in next week's employment report, certainly not good news but still no surprise.
Initial jobless claims in the latest report pointed to steady conditions in the labor market. Initial claims for the week ending May 17 fell 9,000 to 365,000. A look at the comparable four-week averages also showed mild improvement, edging down to 372,250 from 376,750 in the April 12 week. Continuing claims data, the most recent for the May 10 week, are elevated but steady, at 3.073 million and unchanged in the week.
Jobless Claims Consensus Forecast for 5/23/08: 370,000
Range: 360,000 to 380,000
![[Chart]](chart.gif)
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Weekly series fluctuate more dramatically than monthly series even when the series are adjusted for seasonal variation. The 4-week moving average gives a better perspective on the underlying trend. |
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