Weekly Unemployment Benefits Tumble

It’s been seven days, but now it’s time for our weekly jobless benefits update.

Applications for jobless benefits fell by 23,000 for the week ending May 18, bringing the total to 340,000, down from last week’s revised figure of 363,000, the Labor Department announced on Thursday.

The four-week moving average, a “less volatile” figure, fell by 500, bringing the total to 339,500, down from the previous average of 340,000.

“The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.3 percent for the week ending May 11, unchanged from the prior week's revised rate,” the report reads.

“The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending May 11 was 2,912,000, a decrease of 112,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 3,024,000. The 4-week moving average was 2,995,250, a decrease of 23,750 from the preceding week's revised average of 3,019,000,” the report adds.

The states with the largest increases in initial claims for the week ending May 11 were California (+15,060), North Carolina (+1,826), Mississippi (+1,341), Florida (+1,329), and Georgia (+1,118).

Meanwhile, New Mexico (-754), Oregon (-751), New Jersey (-747), Kentucky (-683), and Tennessee (-488) posted the biggest decreases in initial claims.

Markets don’t look like they poised for great things this morning: