US Initial Jobless Claims Total 196,000, Well Below Forecast

U.S. initial jobless claims came in well below market expectations last week.

The Labor Department said on September 17 that initial claims for unemployment benefits totaled 196,000 last week. That was 11,000 below economists’ forecast of 207,000 and 10,000 fewer than the prior week’s revised 206,000.

Continuing claims, which reflect the number of people receiving unemployment benefits for a second consecutive week, totaled 1.73 million. That was down 39,000 from the prior week’s revised 1.769 million and 50,000 below the market forecast of 1.78 million.

Initial jobless claims are a gauge of overheating in the U.S. labor market. An increase in claims can be interpreted as a sign that labor-market tightness is easing.