Weekly initial jobless claims little changed, secondary claims drop sharply

First time jobless claims in the US were little changed during the latest week, but so-called continuing claims registered a large drop.

According to the US Department of Labor, in seasonally adjusted terms the number of initial unemployment claims fell by 14,000 to reach 385,000 over the week ending on 31 July.

Economists had been anticipating a print of 384,000.

The four-week moving average of initial claims meanwhile drifted lower by 250 to 394,000.

Secondary claims on the other hand, which are those not being filed for the first time, shrank by 366,000 to reach 2.93m.

To take note of, the secondary claims numbers tend to be more closely linked to hiring in the economy, as opposed to first time claims, which track firings.