
US Jobless Claims Trendline Falls Below 200,000
US jobless claims hovered near a 50-year low in the week through Christmas Day.
Initial claims in the week ending December 25 were 198,000, down 8,000 from the prior week's upwardly-revised 206,000 headline.
The four-week moving average dropped to 199,250, the lowest since October 25, 1969 (figure below).
Consensus was looking for 206,000 on the headline. The range, from the two-dozen economists who weren't on vacation, was 190,000 to 225,000. Claims have been at or near 52-year lows for th