In the week ending July 4, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 297,000, an increase of 15,000 from the previous week's revised level. Analysts were forecasting decline to 274,000. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 281,000 to 282,000. The 4-week moving average was 279,500, an increase of 4,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 274,750 to 275,000.
The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.7% for the week ending June 27, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending June 27 was 2,334,000, an increase of 69,000 from the previous week's revised level. The 4-week moving average was 2,268,250, an increase of 15,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 2,252,500 to 2,252,750.
Data did not have any major impact on the markets with euro currently being traded 1.1030 level, Sterling is around 1.5380 area, while Aussie is few points above 0.7450 handle.