U.S. new unemployment claims 216,000…below expectations

Uk Jin

Summary

The U.S. new unemployment claims totaled 216,000, 10,000 fewer than experts' forecasts.
This can be seen as a sign that the U.S. labor market's overheating has cooled less than expected.
The probability of a Fed rate cut in December remains high at 84.9%.

Last week, U.S. new unemployment claims fell short of market expectations.

On the 26th (local time), the U.S. Department of Labor said last week's new unemployment claims totaled 216,000. This is 10,000 fewer than the experts' forecast (226,000). It is 6,000 fewer compared with the previous week's revised figure (222,000).

The number of continued unemployment claims, for those filing claims for two consecutive weeks, was 1,960,000. It is 7,000 more than the previous week's revised figure (1,953,000).

Initial unemployment claims are an indicator that gauges overheating in the U.S. labor market. If unemployment claims increase, it can be interpreted as the overheated labor market cooling.

Meanwhile, the probability of a rate cut by the Federal Reserve (Fed) in December remains high at 84.9%.