Jobless Claims Fall 27K to Just 206K for Week Ending December 8

The Labor Department (DOL) said Thursday initial jobless claims fell 27,000 to just 206,000 for the week ending December 1, easily beating the consensus forecast.

The 4-week moving average — which irons out volatility — came in at 224,750, a decline of 3,750. The previous week’s average was revised up by 500 from 228,000 to 228,500.

The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending November 24 were in Alaska (3.1), New Jersey (2.2), California (1.9), Puerto Rico (1.9), Connecticut (1.8), Montana (1.8), Pennsylvania (1.7), Washington (1.7), and West Virginia (1.6).

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate rose marginally 0.1% to a still very low 1.2% for the week ending December 1. 

The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending December 1 came in at 1,661,000, a gain of 25,000 from the previous week’s revised level.

The previous week’s level was revised higher by 5,000 from 1,631,000 to 1,636,000.

The 4-week moving average was 1,665,750, a decrease of 2,500 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was
revised up by 1,250 from 1,667,000 to 1,668,250.

The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending December 1 were in California (+21,061), Pennsylvania (+9,937), New York (+8,652), Illinois (+7,915), and Texas (+7,382), while the largest decreases were in Oklahoma (-813), Kentucky (-764), Massachusetts (-615), Vermont (-293), and Virgin Islands (-3).