Global| Nov 19 2015U.S. Initial Jobless Insurance Claims Ease
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell slightly to 271,000 (-7.2% y/y) during the week ended November 14 from an unrevised 276,000 in the prior week. The Action Economics Forecast Survey expected 270,000 initial claims. The [...]
Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell slightly to 271,000 (-7.2% y/y) during the week ended November 14 from an unrevised 276,000 in the prior week. The Action Economics Forecast Survey expected 270,000 initial claims. The four-week moving average increased slightly to 270,750 but remained near the 15-year low.
The latest reading covers the survey period for November nonfarm payrolls. Initial claims rose 12,000 (4.6%) from the October survey week. During the last ten years, there has been a 75% correlation between the level of initial claims and the m/m change in nonfarm payrolls.
In the week ended November 7, continuing claims for unemployment insurance eased w/w to 2.175 million (-7.5% y/y). The four-week moving average held fairly steady at 2.167 million, but also remained near the 15-year low.
The insured rate of unemployment remained at 1.6%, equaling the lowest point since June 2000.
By state, the insured rate of unemployment continued to vary with North Carolina (0.65%), Indiana (0.70%), Virginia (0.73%), Florida (0.72%), Tennessee (0.85%) and Kansas (0.88%) at the low end of the range. At the high end remained Massachusetts (1.73%), Connecticut (2.01%), Pennsylvania (2.06%), California (2.12%), New Jersey (2.33%) and Alaska (3.41%). These data are not seasonally adjusted.
Data on weekly unemployment insurance are contained in Haver's WEEKLY database and they are summarized monthly in USECON. Data for individual states are in REGIONW. The expectations figure is from the Action Economics survey, carried in the AS1REPNA database.
| Unemployment Insurance (000s) | 11/14/15 | 11/07/15 | 10/31/15 | Y/Y % | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Claims | 271 | 276 | 276 | -7.2 | 307 | 342 | 372 |
| Continuing Claims | -- | 2,175 | 2,177 | -7.5 | 2,607 | 2,978 | 3,308 |
| Insured Unemployment Rate (%) | -- | 1.6 | 1.6 |
1.8 |
2.0 | 2.3 | 2.6 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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