By CountingPips.com
Economic news out of the U.S. on Christmas Eve day showed that durable goods orders increased by less than expected in the month of November. Durable goods orders in the United States rose by 0.2 percent in November to a total of $166.9 billion according to news released by the U.S. Commerce Department today. November’s total marks the second increase in the 
last three months and follows a revised decrease of 0.6 percent from October.
Durable goods are products manufactured in the U.S. and considered to last more than three years.
Market forecasts had been expecting that durable goods orders would increase by approximately 0.5 percent for the month.
New orders for durable goods excluding transportation increased by 2.0 percent in November following a revised decrease of 0.7 percent in October. Market forecasts were predicting an increase of 1.0 percent for durables minus transportation.
November’s results for shipments of durable goods increased by 0.3 percent and gained for the third straight month. Unfilled orders decreased for the fourteenth straight month by 1.3 percent while durable good inventories decreased 0.2 percent in November. November nondefense orders for new goods fell by 1.9 percent while defense orders for capital goods increased by 8.5 percent.
Weekly Jobless Claims fall by 28,000.
A separate government release by the U.S. Labor Department showed that weekly U.S. jobless claims decreased in the week that ended on December 19th. New jobless claims fell to a total of 452,000 unemployed workers, a decrease over the prior week by 28,000 workers. A 4-week moving average of unemployed workers declined by 2,750 from the prior week to a total of 465,250.
Meanwhile, workers seeking continuing claims for unemployment benefits for the week ending December 12th also decreased for the week. Continuing claims fell by 127,000 workers to a total of 5,076,000 unemployed workers. A four week moving average of continuing claims dropped by 90,000 to 5,233,000.
US Dollar showing mixed results in forex trading.
The U.S. dollar has been mixed in forex trading today against the major currencies in light holiday trading. The dollar has edged up versus the British pound and the Japanese yen while falling against the euro, Australian dollar, Canadian dollar, Swiss franc and New Zealand dollar according to currency data by Oanda at 10:29 am EDT.
The US stock markets have traded higher today with the Dow Jones gaining by over 35 points, the Nasdaq increasing over 8 points and the S&P 500 advancing by over 3 points at the time of writing. Oil has traded higher to around $77.19 while gold has gained by almost $10.00 to trading around the $1,103.20 per ounce level.
EUR/USD 4-Hour Chart – The Euro gaining today versus the US Dollar in Forex Trading for the second day in a row and breaking out from its downward price channel. The EUR/USD pair found support around the 1.4200 level after a steep decline from its recent high at 1.5141 on December 3rd.
