Unemployment claims in the US showed the sharpest drop since October 2021 last week.
Applications for unemployment benefits in the USA fell to 239 thousand, with a decrease of 26 thousand in the week that ended on June 24 and included the holiday.
Continuing filings, which include those receiving unemployment benefits for more than a week, fell to 1.7 million in the week ended June 17.
Despite the decline in unemployment benefits, demand for labor is slowly decreasing as the Fed’s more than a year-long interest rate hikes take their toll on the economy.
Chairman Jerome Powell said this week that the labor market has cooled as the central bank had hoped and that if this continues, it could limit job losses.
Unemployment benefits application data can fluctuate from week to week, especially during holiday periods.
Correcting some of this volatility, the four-week moving average of initial applications rose to 257,500, the highest level since the end of 2021.