Jobless claims continue to point to solid hiring in the US

A key indicator of US labour demand continued to point to robust hiring conditions through last week.

According to the Department of Labor, initial US jobless claims fell by 8,000 during the week ending on 3 August to reach 209,000.

Economists at Barclays Research had penciled-in a print of 215,000.

Despite the previous week's drop, the four-week moving average, which aims to smooth out the fluctuations in the data from one week to the next, edged higher by 250 to 212,250.

Continuing claims, which are those that are not being filed for the first time and referencing the week ending on 27 July, dipped by 15,000 to hit 1.684m.

Initial jobless claims for the week ending on 27 July were initially reported at 215,000 and the four-week moving average a 211,500.