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Initial claims for state unemployment benefits declined 13,000
to a seasonally adjusted 209,000 for the week ended July 6, the
lowest level since April, the Labor Department said on Thursday.
Data for the prior week was revised to show 1,000 more
applications received than previously reported.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims rising to
223,000 in the latest week.
The four-week moving average of initial claims, considered a
better measure of labor market trends as it irons out
week-to-week volatility, fell 3,250 to 219,250 last week.
The Labor Department said no claims were estimated last week.
The claims data is entering a period of volatility as auto
manufacturers temporarily shut down assembly plants for summer
retooling. Companies carry out the plant closures at different
times, which can throw off the model the government uses to
strip out seasonal fluctuations from the data.
There is still no sign of an increase in layoffs related to a
trade war between the United States and China, which has helped
to dim the economy's outlook and raise expectations for an
interest rate cut this month, the first in a decade.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told lawmakers on
Wednesday that the U.S. central bank would "act as appropriate"
to protect the economy from the trade tensions and slowing
global growth.
Fed officials are scheduled to meet on July 30-31. The economy
is also slowing as last year's massive stimulus from tax cuts
and more government spending fades. Manufacturing is struggling,
the trade deficit is widening again, consumer spending is rising
moderately and the housing sector remains mired in a soft patch.
Despite the rising risks to the 10-year old economic expansion,
the longest in history, the labor market remains healthy. The
economy created 224,000 job in June. While the unemployment rate
ticked up one-tenth of a percentage point to 3.7%, that was
because more people entered the labor market, a sign of
confidence in their employment prospects.
Thursday's claims report also showed the number of people
receiving benefits after an initial week of aid increased 27,000
to 1.72 million for the week ended June 29, the highest level
since March. The four-week moving average of the so-called
continuing claims rose 5,750 to 1.69 million.
(Reporting By Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
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