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Economy in Brief
German PPI Rises at Nine-Month High Pace
The German PPI gained 0.2% in June on the heels of a 0.6% rise in May...
U.S. Leading Economic Indicators Improve
The Conference Board's Composite Index of Leading Economic Indicators increased 0.5% (5.8% y/y) during June...
Philadelphia Fed Factory Conditions Recover; Prices Surge
The Philadelphia Fed reported that its General Factory Sector Business Conditions Index rebounded to 25.7 during July...
U.S. Initial Unemployment Insurance Claims Hit Lowest Since 1969
Initial claims for unemployment insurance dropped to 207,000 during the week ended July 14...
Japan's Trade Deficit Swings Back to Surplus (Small Surplus)
Japan's early June trade results show a goods trade position having swung back to surplus in June from deficit in May...
by Carol Stone March 8, 2007
Initial unemployment insurance claims fell 10,000 to 328,000 in the week ended March 3, basically reversing the prior week's 7,000 increase. The figure was marginally lower than Consensus expectations for a decline to 330,000 claims.
Despite the drop in the latest week, the four-week moving average of initial claims rose to 339,000, the highest since the Katrina-inflated numbers in the autumn of 2005.
In the week of Feb 24, continuing claims fell 98,000 to 2.526 million after a rise of 118,000 the week before, which likely had been storm-related. This pulled the associated rate of insured unemployment back down to its recent 1.9% average from a one-week move to 2.0%.
| Unemployment Insurance (000s) | 03/03/07 | 02/24/07 | 02/17/07 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Claims | 328 | 338 | 331 | 313 | 332 | 343 |
| Continuing Claims | -- | 2,526 | 2,624 | 2,459 | 2,662 | 2,924 |
