First Time Jobless Claims Drop 6K

Unemployment remains very low with initial claims down 6,000 in the August 22 week to 271,000. The 4-week average rose slightly in the week to 272,500 but is still slightly lower than the month-ago comparison. Continuing claims, which are reported with a 1-week lag, rose 13,000 to a 2.269 million level which is just about where the 4-week average is, at 2.265 million for a 1,000 decline. The unemployment rate for insured workers is unchanged at a very low 1.7 percent. All the readings in this report are very low and suggest that remaining slack in the labor market is very thin. There are no special factors in today's report.

Recent History Of This Indicator: Initial jobless claims are expected to inch slightly lower to 274,000. With the forecast range between 268,000 and 275,000, there are no expectations that claims will break higher. Since back in March, claims data have been signaling unusually healthy conditions on the unemployment side of the labor market.