US weekly Initial Jobless Claims rise to 218K vs. 210K expected

• Initial Jobless Claims in the US increased by 12,000 in the week ending December 23.
• US Dollar Index slides modestly, stays under modest bearish pressure,  below 101.00.

There were 218,000 initial jobless claims in the week ending December 23, the weekly data published by the US Department of Labor (DOL) showed on Thursday. This print followed the previous week’s print of 206,000 (revised from 205,000) and came in worse than the market expectation of 210,000.

Further details of the publication revealed that the advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.3% and the 4-week moving average stood at 212,000, a decrease of 250 from the previous week’s revised average.

Continuing Claims increased by 14,000 to 1.875 million in the week ended December 16, the highest level in four weeks. 

Market reaction

The US Dollar Index dropped modestly after the data, falling below 100.80. US Treasury yields remained in positive territory for the day but moved off highs. Later in the day, at 15:00 GMT, the November Pending Home Sales report is due.