Jobless Claims: Small Increase

Bottom Line: Initial claims climbed slightly last week but remained near the recent lows. The 4-week average is at 212k, below the 13-week average that is now 218k, indicating the labor market trends continue to show improvement, quite remarkable this late into an economic cycle. Jobless Claims ROSE by 3k during the week ended August 25th, 213k, compared with market expectations for an increase to 212k.The 4-week average FELL by 1.5k to 212k and the 13 week average FELL by 0.8k to 218k. Continuing Claims FELL by 20k during the week ended August 18th to 1,708k, after the prior week was revised slightly higher from 1,727k to 1,728k.The 4-week average FELL by 5k to 1,731k. On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, Continuing Claims FELL by 46k to 1,623k during the week ended August 11st. The Insured Jobless Rate STAYED at 1.2% during the week ended August 18th. The insured jobless rate only reflects the number of people collecting regular state unemployment insurance.