In this morning’s data, Initial Jobless Claims were 233,000 for the week ending Aug 3rd, less than expected and -17,000 less than the revised figure from the previous week. In addition, Continuing Claims were 1,875,000 for the week ending July 27th, as expected and 6,000 more than the previous week’s revised figure.
Overall, initial claims came in less than expected and continuing claims were as expected. As a real-time view for the labor market, the slight pullback in initial claims gives some relief. Although, both initial and continuing claims are higher than levels earlier this year, denoting the rebalancing the labor market has incurred over that time. Considering a rising unemployment rate from last week’s payrolls report, albeit rising from very low levels a few months ago, the Federal Reserve is likely equally focused on employment and inflation given their dual mandate. How the incoming data guides the Fed to adjust their policy in the coming weeks will be key for consumers, markets, and the economy as we move closer to the upcoming election.
In all, the yield on the 10-year US treasury is higher this morning and equity futures are also higher as we head into the market open.
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