The U.S. labor market remains a bright spot in the economy. Fewer Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, and hiring managers continued to complain about a dearth of available workers.
Highlights from the Labor Department report:
- Initial jobless claims decreased by 10k to 245k (forecast was 240k)
- Continuing claims fell by 2k to 1.92 million in week ended May 27 (data reported with one-week lag)
- Four-week average of initial claims, a less-volatile measure than the weekly figure, rose to 242k from 239.75k in the prior week