Weekly jobless claims back at low end of range

Weekly initial jobless claims reversed last week’s rise, falling 16,000 to 453,000.  The 4-week moving average came in at 458,000, down from 464,250, while continuing claims fell 83,000 to 4,457,000.


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The current high level is not overly impressive and continues to highlight the uncertainty in the business community. However, claims are near the low end of the nine month range, strongly suggesting the economy is not poised to enter a new recession.