Article by ForexTime

Initial jobless claims dropped last week by 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 271,000 for the week ended November 14, the Labor Department said. Claims have now held below the 300,000 mark for 37 consecutive weeks, the longest stretch in years, and are not too far from levels last seen in the early 1970s.

Claims below this level are usually associated with a healthy jobs market. Economists say there is little scope for claims to drop further as the labor market approaches full employment. The four-week moving average of claims, considered a better measure of labor market trends as it strips out week-to-week volatility, rose 3,000 to 270,750 last week.

The claims data covered the survey period for the nonfarm payrolls portion of the November employment report. The four- week average of claims rose 7,500 between the October and November surveys, suggesting a pullback in job growth from October’s robust 271,000 gain.

Minutes of the Fed policy-setting committee’s October 27-28 meeting published on Wednesday showed officials rallied behind a possible December increase in the U.S. central bank’s benchmark overnight interest rate.

Article by ForexTime

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