US Initial Jobless Claims Hold at Tame Level

2026-01-29 13:37 By Andre Joaquim 1 min. read

Initial jobless claims in the US inched lower by 1,000 to 209,000 from the upwardly revised value in the previous week, ahead of the market consensus of 205,000.

In the meantime, continuing claims fell by 38,000 to 1,827,000 on the earlier week, firmly below market expectations of 1,860,000, to reflect the softest level of outstanding unemployment since September of 2024.

The result extended the trend of a low-firing and low-hiring labor market, stabilizing since the marked softening on the fourth quarter of 2025 and aligned with the outlook of a lower labor demand and lower labor supply outlined by Fed Chair Powell after the Fed's recent rate hold.

In the meantime, initial unemployment claims from federal employees, which have been under scrutiny as markets measure the impact of the US government shutdown, fell by 212 to 798.



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