In the week ending September 2, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 216,000, a decrease of 13,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 228,000 to 229,000. The 4-week moving average was 229,250, a decrease of 8,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 237,500 to 237,750. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.1 percent for the week ending August 26, a decrease of 0.1 percentage point from the previous week's unrevised rate. The advance number for ... (full story)

The number of Americans filing for new unemployment insurance unexpectedly fell last week, suggesting a lingering tightness in the U.S. labor market that may impact the Federal Reserve's upcoming monetary policy decisions. Initial jobless claims, widely seen as a proxy for lay-offs, decreased to 216,000 in the week ended on September 2, down from a marginally upwardly revised reading of 229,000 in the prior week. Economists had projected that the figure would climb to 234,000. The four-week moving average, which aims to account for volatility in the weekly data, also inched lower to 229,250. (full story)