Jobless Claims: Modest Bounce Driven By Seasonal Adjustments

Bottom Line: Initial claims rose in the week ended May 12th, mostly due to seasonal adjustments. The trend remains towards modest, steady improvement in labor markets with the 4-week average at 213k, below the 13-week average that is now 223k. Jobless Claims ROSE by 11k during the week ended May 12nd, 222k, compared with market expectations for an increase to 215k.The 4-week average FELL by 2.8k to 213k and the 13 week average FELL by 0.9k to 223k. Continuing Claims FELL by 87k during the week ended May 5th to 1,707k, after the prior week was revised slightly lower from 1,871k to 1,794k.The 4-week average FELL by 40k to 1,774k. On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, Continuing Claims FELL by 133k to 1,591k during the week ended April 28th. The Insured Jobless Rate FELL by 0.1% to 1.2% during the week ended May 5th. The insured jobless rate only reflects the number of people collecting regular state unemployment insurance.