The Dow Jones (DJIA) opened higher on Thursday after applications for initial U.S. unemployment benefits fell to their lowest level since September 2022.
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The Department of Labor announced that initial jobless claims for the week ended November 29 fell by 27,000 to 216,000 and were below the consensus estimate of 220,000. Continuing jobless claims, which track ongoing unemployment benefit recipients, were 1.939 million for the week ended November 22, slightly below the estimate of 1.963 million.
Holiday Noise Adds Uncertainty to Claims Readings
Initial jobless claims have remained in a range since late-2021, while continuing jobless claims have steadily risen since September. That signals that employers are still hesitant to both fire and hire.
It’s worth noting that claims can be volatile during periods that cover holidays, like Thanksgiving. “Initial claims can be subject to big swings at this time of year, so we won’t read too much into one week’s number,” said Oxford Economics lead economist Nancy Vanden Houten.
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