U.S. Initial Jobless Claims Rise, but Remain Below Forecast

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits for the first time increased slightly last week, though the figure remained below market expectations, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Data released on Thursday showed that initial jobless claims for the week ending July 25 rose by 9,000 to 197,000, up from the previous week’s revised total of 188,000.

Economists had expected new claims to reach 201,000 during the week.

The four-week moving average, which smooths out weekly fluctuations and provides a clearer picture of labor market trends, fell by 5,000 to 202,750.

Meanwhile, continuing claims, which measure the number of people receiving regular unemployment benefits, declined by 7,000 to 1.782 million in the week ending July 18.

The Labor Department said the insured unemployment rate remained unchanged at 1.2 percent.

Separate labor market data showed that the U.S. economy added 57,000 jobs in June, well below economists’ expectations of 110,000. However, the unemployment rate edged down to 4.2 percent in June from 4.3 percent in May.