by Calculated Risk on 9/16/2010 08:32:00 AM

The DOL reports on weekly unemployment insurance claims:

In the week ending Sept. 11, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 450,000, a decrease of 3,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 453,000 [revised up from 451,000]. The 4-week moving average was 464,750, a decrease of 13,500 from the previous week's revised average of 478,250.

Click on graph for larger image in new window.

This graph shows the 4-week moving average of weekly claims since January 2000.

The dashed line on the graph is the current 4-week average. The four-week average of weekly unemployment claims decreased this week by 13,500 to 464,750.

This is the lowest level for weekly claims since early July, but it is still very high - the 4-week moving average has been moving sideways at an elevated level for about 10 months - and that suggests a weak job market.