In the week ending June 18, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 229,000, a decrease of 2,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 2,000 from 229,000 to 231,000. The 4-week moving average was 223,500, an increase of 4,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 500 from 218,500 to 219,000. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 0.9 percent for the week ending June 11, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured ... (full story)

The number of new applications for unemployment benefits dropped by 2,000 last week to 229,000 as the Federal Reserve hikes interest rates to rein in explosive inflation. While initial jobless claims were largely below 200,000 from February until May, they have been pushing slightly higher over the past few weeks as fears grow that the Fed’s historic tightening could knock the economy into a recession. Around this time in June of 2021, new claims were averaging over 400,000 per week, showing just how far the country’s economic recovery has come since the pandemic began waning. The lowest number of recent jobless ... (full story)