Investing.com - The number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. fell more-than-expected last week, official data showed on Thursday.
In a report, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending October 19 fell by 23,000 to a seasonally adjusted 369,000, compared to expectations for a decrease of 22,000 to 370,000.
The previous week’s figure was revised up to 392,000 from a previously reported 388,000.
Jobless claims have remained below 400,000, a level historically associated with an improving labor market, in 50 of the past 52 weeks.
Continuing jobless claims in the week ended October 12 fell to 3.254 million from a revised 3.256 million. Analysts had expected continuing claims to decline to 3.255 million.
The four-week moving average was 368,000, an increase of 1,500 from the previous week's revised average of 366,500.
The monthly average is seen as a more accurate gauge of labor trends because it reduces volatility in the week-to-week data.
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar held on to losses against the euro, with EUR/USD adding 0.07% to trade at 1.2982.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock index futures remained higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a gain of 0.45%, S&P 500 futures indicated a rise of 0.5%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures signaled an increase of 0.6%.
In a report, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending October 19 fell by 23,000 to a seasonally adjusted 369,000, compared to expectations for a decrease of 22,000 to 370,000.
The previous week’s figure was revised up to 392,000 from a previously reported 388,000.
Jobless claims have remained below 400,000, a level historically associated with an improving labor market, in 50 of the past 52 weeks.
Continuing jobless claims in the week ended October 12 fell to 3.254 million from a revised 3.256 million. Analysts had expected continuing claims to decline to 3.255 million.
The four-week moving average was 368,000, an increase of 1,500 from the previous week's revised average of 366,500.
The monthly average is seen as a more accurate gauge of labor trends because it reduces volatility in the week-to-week data.
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar held on to losses against the euro, with EUR/USD adding 0.07% to trade at 1.2982.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock index futures remained higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a gain of 0.45%, S&P 500 futures indicated a rise of 0.5%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures signaled an increase of 0.6%.