seasonally adjusted initial claims was 339,000 [View All]

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http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/eta/ui/current.htm

July 22, 2004
UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE WEEKLY CLAIMS REPORT

SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA

In the week ending July 17, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 339,000, a decrease of 11,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 350,000. The 4-week moving average was 336,750, a decrease of 2,500 from the previous week's revised average of 339,250.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.2 percent for the week ending July 10, a decrease of 0.2 percentage point from the prior week's unrevised rate of 2.4 percent.

The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending July 10 was 2,797,000, a decrease of 167,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 2,964,000. The 4-week moving average was 2,894,250, a decrease of 38,750 from the preceding week's revised average of 2,933,000.


UNADJUSTED DATA

The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 391,807 in the week ending July 17, a decrease of 52,393 from the previous week. There were 429,381 initial claims in the comparable week in 2003.

The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.3 percent during the week ending July 10, an increase of 0.1 percentage point from the prior week. The advance unadjusted number for persons claiming UI benefits in state programs totaled 2,903,256, an increase of 173,678 from the preceding week. A year earlier, the rate was 2.9 percent and the volume was 3,692,996.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=716&e=15&u=/nm/20040722/bs_nm/economy_jobless_dc

Jobless Claims Fall 11,000 Last Week

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans signing up for unemployment benefits last week fell more steeply than expected, while the total number of people on the jobless rolls fell to the lowest level in more than three years, a government report showed on Thursday.

First-time claims for state unemployment insurance benefits dropped 11,000 in the week ended July 17 to 339,000, down from a revised 350,000 in the prior week and well below the 394,000 for the same period a year ago, the Labor Department (news - web sites) said.

The latest figure was below the 345,000 average forecast by economists in a Reuters poll and the previous week's 349,000 originally reported by the Labor Department. <snip>

The Labor Department attributed the weekly decline in the continued claims numbers to seasonal factors misreading when the annual summer automobile plants shut down earlier this month.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=530&ncid=530&e=2&u=/ap/20040722/ap_on_bi_go_ec_fi/jobless_claims

Weekly Jobless Claims Dip by 11,000

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER, AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON - The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell slightly last week in another indication that the labor market is still showing signs of improvement.

The Labor Department reported that 339,000 newly laid-off workers showed up at state unemployment offices for the week ending July 17, down by 11,000 from the previous week. <snip>

Kerry, however, contends that this has been the weakest recovery in terms of job growth since the Great Depression and even with 10 consecutive months of job gains, there are still 1.1 million fewer people on payrolls than when Bush took office in January 2001. <snip>

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/economy/economies.html

Jobless Claims in U.S. Decline by 11,000, More Than Expected, to 339,000

July 22 (Bloomberg) -- <snip>The statistics this month have been distorted because the government has difficulty adjusting for seasonal closings at the nation's auto plants as carmakers retool for new models. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said Tuesday that July job growth has been ``somewhat better'' than it was in June, when employment grew less than forecast. <snip>

The closings this year occurred a week later than in 2003, making it hard for the Labor Department to adjust for the variations, according to economists including Stephen Stanley at RBS Greenwich Capital Markets. The government uses changes in claims for prior years to determine how much to adjust claims this year. If the shutdowns happen at different times, it causes the figures to be artificially depressed one week and be too high in following weeks. <snip>

The unemployment rate will average 5.25 percent to 5.5 percent in this year's fourth quarter and would be in a range of 5 percent to 5.5 percent next year, according to the central bank's updated forecasts. The jobless rate was 5.6 percent last month.

The drop in consumer spending last month ``should prove short-lived,'' Greenspan told legislators this week. ``The improvement in labor market conditions will doubtless have important follow-on effects for household spending. Expanding employment should provide a lift to personal disposable income, adding to the support stemming from cuts in personal income taxes over the past year.''