Initial US jobless claims hold near cycle lows

First time jobless claims in the US held near their cycle lows during the past week.

According to the Department of Labor, in seasonally adjusted terms, filings for initial unemployment claims drifted lower by 2,000 over the week ending on 16 April to reach 184,000.

That was basically in line with the consensus forecast for a reading of 185,000.

The four-week moving average meanwhile, which aims to smooth out the fluctuations in the figures from one week to another, rose by 4,500 to 177,250.

Secondary unemployment claims, which are those not being filed for the first time and referencing the week ending on 9 April, dropped by 58,000 to approximately 1.42m - a near half-century low.

Looking ahead, Nancy Vanden Houten and Kathy Bostjancic at Oxford Economics told clients: "We expect initial claims to remain below 200k in the weeks ahead, as employers, who continue to struggle to attract and retain workers, will keep layoffs to a minimum.

"Even as the economy slows in response to high inflation and rising interest rates, we expect employers will be more likely to slow the pace of hiring than to let go of workers."