U.S. weekly initial jobless claims fall, but remain high

U.S. initial jobless claims dropped by 603,000 to 3.9 million for the week ended 25th April. Even if the jobless claims fell for a third week, the number was slightly above market expectations of 3.5 million.

Continuing claims rose 2.2 million to 17.9 million for the week ended 18th April, bringing the insured jobless rate to 12.4 percent, up from 10.9 percent in the prior week.

Region wise, Florida saw the largest rise in the claims, rising 326,000. Meanwhile, big states saw declines, including California and New York.

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits is still at high levels, but at least it is on a downward trajectory, noted TD Economics in a research report.

“The insured unemployment rate suggests that the official rate to be reported next week will be well into the double digits. How high it gets will depend not only on the number of jobs lost, but also on how many people have left the labor force for lack of opportunity during the crisis”, added TD Economics.