U.S. jobless claims rise, but stay close to recovery-level lows; low layoffs level to support consumer sentiment

Initial jobless claims in the U.S. increased; however, the claims stay near the recovery-level lows. For the week ended 21 January, initial jobless claims grew 22,000 to 259,000, as compared with the consensus expectations of 274,000. The earlier week’s data was upwardly revised to 237k from the initially reported 234k.

There is no negative signal from the increase in claims as the readings in mid-January were just a few thousand above the recovery-level lows reached in November 2016. Also, the decline in recent weeks is viewed as slightly out of step with other labor market data that indicated stability in labor market conditions, noted Barclays in a research report.

In spite of the rise in this week, the four-week moving average of initial claims fell to 246k from 284k. For the week ended 14 January, continuing claims also rose by 41k to 2.100 million from 2.059 million in the week prior. Looking at the report, the claims’ level is in line with ongoing, although modest, rebound in the U.S. labor markets. Moreover, the data indicates that the low level of layoffs might continue to underpin consumer confidence and spending, added Barclays.

At 05:00 GMT the FxWirePro's Hourly Strength Index of US Dollar was neutral at 30.1827. For more details on FxWirePro's Currency Strength Index, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/currencyindex