Jobless claims 522,000 vs. 535,000 consensus

• First time claims for unemployment benefits continued to decrease in the week. 
• Report showed that jobless claims fell to 522,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 569,000. 
• Economist had been expecting jobless claims to fall to about 530,000 from the 565,000 originally reported from the previous week.
• Jobless claims fell further below the 600,000 level.
• Seasonal issues in the auto sector have continued to impact jobless claims, skewing the data artificially lower. 
• Report also showed that the less volatile four-week moving average fell to 584,500 from the previous week’s revised average of 607,000.
• Excluding the auto sector, the declines may still generate some optimism about a stabilization in the labor market.

Source: RTT News & Barron's