Claims for Unemployment Benefits Tumble 12K

And it's time for another weekly unemployment benefits update.

Applications for jobless benefits fell by 12,000 for the week ending June 8, bringing the total to 334,000, down from last week’s revised figure of 346,000, the Labor Department announced on Thursday.

The four-week moving average, a “less volatile” figure, fell by 7,250, bringing the total to 345,250, up from the previous average of 352,500.

Both prints are about 7,000 above last month’s report.

“The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.3 percent for the week ending June 1, unchanged from the prior week's unrevised rate,” the report reads.

“The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending June 1 was 2,973,000, an increase of 2,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 2,971,000. The 4-week moving average was 2,967,250, a decrease of 12,750 from the preceding week's revised average of 2,980,000,” it adds.

The states with the largest increases in initial claims for the week ending June 1 were Tennessee (+1,280), New York (+1,001), Oregon (+851), Montana (+501), and North Carolina (+302).

Meanwhile, California (-8,796), Florida (-3,250), Pennsylvania (-1,923), Texas (-1,876), and Missouri (-1,704) posted the biggest decreases in initial claims.

Despite the decent numbers, U.S. stocks are still jittery over the calamity with Japan’s Nikkei: