by Calculated Risk on 9/09/2010 08:30:00 AM

UPDATE: BofA noted this morning that 9 states reported delays in filing jobless claims because of labor day weekend ... so the actual was probably higher (ht Brian)

The DOL reports on weekly unemployment insurance claims:

In the week ending Sept. 4, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 451,000, a decrease of 27,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 478,000. The 4-week moving average was 477,750, a decrease of 9,250 from the previous week's revised average of 487,000.

Click on graph for larger image in new window.

This graph shows the 4-week moving average of weekly claims since January 2000.

The dashed line on the graph is the current 4-week average. The four-week average of weekly unemployment claims decreased this week by 9,250 to 477,750.

Claims for last week were revised up from 472,000 to 478,000.

This is the lowest level for weekly claims since early July, but it is still very high - and the current level of the 4-week average suggests a weak job market.