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Initial claims for state unemployment benefits declined 18,000
to a seasonally adjusted 259,000 for the week ended June 18, the
Labor Department said on Thursday. The drop left claims not too
far from a 43-year low touched in March.
Claims for the prior week were unrevised. Economists polled by
Reuters had forecast initial claims falling only to 270,000 in
the latest week. Claims have now been below 300,000, a threshold
associated with a strong job market, for 68 straight weeks, the
longest streak since 1973.
The four-week moving average of claims, considered a better
measure of labor market trends as it irons out week-to-week
volatility, fell 2,250 to 267,000 last week.
A Labor Department analyst said there were no special factors
influencing last week's claims data and no states had been
estimated.
The claims report covered the survey period for June non-farm
payrolls. The four-week average of claims declined 8,750 between
the May and June survey periods, suggesting an improvement in
job growth after payrolls increased only 38,000 in May - the
smallest increase since September 2010.
Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen told lawmakers on Tuesday
that the U.S. central bank believed last month's slowdown in
payrolls gains was transitory," noting that "several other
timely indicators of labor market conditions still look
favorable."
Labor market optimism is being spurred by near record high job
openings, as well as the very low layoffs.
Thursday's claims report showed the number of people still
receiving benefits after an initial week of aid fell 20,000 to
2.14 million in the week ended June 11. The four-week average of
the so-called continuing claims slipped 4,500 to 2.15 million.
((Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci))
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