Nearly two months after they unexpectedly rose, initial claims for unemployment insurance in the U.S. have declined for two consecutive weeks. For the week ending June 25, the seasonally adjusted figure for jobless claims was 310,000, a decrease of 6,000 claims from the previous week's revised figure of 316,000, the U.S. Labor Department reported on June 30.
The department's four-week moving average of initial claims, often considered to be a better indicator of underlying labor market trends because it smooths out week-to-week changes, also declined last week. The average was 323,500 claims, down 10,250 from the previous week's revised average of 333,750.
