US initial jobless claims decline for a fifth straight week

Applications for U.S. unemployment benefits declined for a fifth straight week to the lowest level since mid-April, showing a resilient job market.

First-time jobless claims decreased by 7,000 to 221,000 in the week ended July 12. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 233,000 applications.

Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving benefits, were little changed at 1.96 million in the previous week that included Independence Day, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.

Weekly claims have fallen back toward subdued levels seen before the pandemic after trending higher in May and June. At the same time, recurring claims near the highest since 2021 suggests unemployed Americans continue to find difficulty in securing a new job as the pace of hiring has slowed.

The four-week moving average of new applications, a metric that helps smooth out volatility, dropped to 229,500 — the lowest since early May.

Before adjusting for seasonal factors, initial claims rose 19,539 last week to 260,900. New York, Nevada and Texas saw the largest unadjusted increases, while claims fell in Michigan, New Jersey and Tennessee.

Still, some large companies such as Recruit Holdings Co. and Intel Corp. have recently said they’re cutting jobs.