by Calculated Risk on 11/19/2015 08:34:00 AM

The DOL reported:

In the week ending November 14, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 271,000, a decrease of 5,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 276,000. The 4-week moving average was 270,750, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's unrevised average of 267,750.

There were no special factors impacting this week's initial claims.

The previous week was unrevised at 276,000.

The following graph shows the 4-week moving average of weekly claims since 1971.

Click on graph for larger image.


The dashed line on the graph is the current 4-week average. The four-week average of weekly unemployment claims increased to 270,750.

This was slightly above the consensus forecast of 270,000, however the low level of the 4-week average suggests few layoffs.