U.S. jobless claims exceed expectations
According to data released by the U.S. Department of Labor, the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits for the first time increased by 9,000 to 200,000 in the week ending November 7.
Market expectations had pointed to 194,000 initial claims. The previous week's figure was revised upward from 189,000 to 191,000. Weekly jobless claims therefore exceeded expectations, signaling modest weakness in the U.S. labor market.
The four-week moving average of initial jobless claims remained unchanged at 195,250. Meanwhile, continuing jobless claims declined by 20,000 to 1.697 million in the week ending October 31. Despite the increase in initial claims, the decline in continuing claims presented a mixed picture of labor market conditions. The data will be closely monitored as investors assess the outlook for the Federal Reserve's (Fed) December interest rate decision.