Weekly Unemployment Claims (every Thursday)
Last week’s unemployment filings were posted at 8:30 AM ET this morning, revealing 745,000 new claims for benefits were made during the week. This was close to expectations and shows the employment sector is still struggling. What makes the report somewhat favorable for bonds and mortgage pricing is the fact this was an increase from the previous week’s revised 736,000 initial filings. Rising claims is a sign the employment sector is weakening, not recovering, and makes broader economic growth more difficult.