The latest weekly US unemployment insurance data showed initial jobless claims of 206K for the current week, marginally above the 205K consensus estimate and up from the prior week's revised figure of 204K.

The four-week moving average, which smooths out week-to-week volatility, came in at 207.25K compared with 205.75K previously.

Continuing claims, which measure the number of people still receiving regular unemployment benefits after the initial claim, registered 1.779 million, below the 1.790 million estimate and slightly higher than the prior week's 1.7719 million.

The claims data continues to point to steady employment conditions in the United States. There is not a lot of hiring, and there is not a lot of firing. Weekly claims readings in the low-200K range have historically been associated with tight labor markets, and economists typically watch for a sustained climb well above such levels before reading broader labor cooling into the series.

Initial jobless claims are released weekly by the US Department of Labor every Thursday and are among the most closely watched high-frequency indicators of labor market health, often moving the US dollar and other financial markets on release. Because they arrive weekly, unlike the monthly payrolls report, claims often serve as an early real-time signal for shifts in hiring and firing between official employment releases.

Source: investingLive