US: Initial weekly jobless claims increased by 4,000 to 239,000

“In the week ending February 9, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 239,000, an increase of 4,000 from the previous week’s revised level,” the U.S. Department of Labor announced on Thursday.

Key takeaways from the press release

• The 4-week moving average was 231,750, an increase of 6,750 from the previous week’s revised average.  
  • This is the highest level for this average since January 27, 2018 when it was 234,000.  
• The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.2 percent for the week ending February 2, unchanged from the previous week’s unrevised rate.  
• The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending February 2 was 1,773,000, an increase of 37,000 from the previous week’s unrevised level of 1,736,000.