Jobless Claims: New Claims Decline Moderately

Bottom Line: Initial claims declined moderately and are at their lowest level in 7 weeks. The 4-week average is at 281k, still above the 13-week average that is now 276k, indicating the labor market improvement trend is losing momentum. The continuing claims fell slightly but the pace of decline has now slowed. Jobless Claims FELL by 16k during the week ended February 6th to 269k, the lowest level since December, compared with market expectations for a decrease to 280k.The 4-week average FELL by 4k to 281k and the 13 week average FELL by 1k to 276k. Initial claims had been on a declining trend over the past 6 years but the pace of decline has now slowed. Continuing Claims FELL by 21k during the week ended January 30th to 2,239k, after the prior week was revised slightly higher from 2,255k to 2,260k. The 4-week average FELL by 6k to 2,248k. Continuing claims have also been on a declining trend for more than 5 years but the pace of decline has now slowed. On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, Continuing Claims FELL by 22k to 2,667k during the week ended January 23rd. Continuing claims have been declining amid modest volatility for the past six years. The Insured Jobless Rate FELL by 0.1% to 1.6% during the week ended January 30th. The insured jobless rate only reflects the number of people collecting regular state unemployment insurance.