US Initial Jobless Claims Total 197,000, Below Forecast - bloomingbit

U.S. initial jobless claims came in below market expectations last week. The Labor Department said on October 8 that initial jobless claims totaled 197,000 last week. That was 3,000 below economists' forecast of 200,000 and 2,000 lower than the prior week's revised 199,000. Continuing claims, which track people receiving unemployment benefits for a second straight week, came to 1.716 million. That was 17,000 above the prior week's revised 1.699 million and 6,000 higher than the market forecast of 1.71 million. Initial jobless claims are a gauge of whether the U.S. labor market is overheating. An increase in claims can be interpreted as a sign that an overheated labor market is cooling.