U.S. Initial Jobless Claims at 223,000, Below Market Expectations

Last week, the number of initial jobless claims in the United States fell below market expectations.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced on the 20th (local time) that the number of initial jobless claims last week was counted at 223,000. This is 1,000 less than the expert forecast of 224,000. Compared to the revised figure of the previous week (221,000), it is 2,000 more.

The number of continued jobless claims, which refers to those who have claimed unemployment benefits for two consecutive weeks, was counted at 1,892,000. This is 33,000 and 2,000 more than the revised figure of the previous week (1,859,000) and the market expectation (1,890,000), respectively.

The number of initial jobless claims is an indicator that can gauge the overheating situation of the U.S. labor market. An increase in jobless claims can be interpreted as a sign that the overheated labor market is cooling down.

Experts are closely monitoring employment indicators such as jobless claims to understand the impact of U.S. President Donald Trump's federal government restructuring and tariff increases on corporate decision-making.