by Calculated Risk on 9/22/2011 08:30:00 AM

The DOL reports:

In the week ending September 17, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 423,000, a decrease of 9,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 432,000. The 4-week moving average was 421,000, an increase of 500 from the previous week's revised average of 420,500.

The following graph shows the 4-week moving average of weekly claims since January 2000 (there is a longer term graph in graph gallery).

Click on graph for larger image in graph gallery.

The dashed line on the graph is the current 4-week average. The four-week average of weekly unemployment claims increased this week to 421,000.

The 4-week average has been increasing recently and this is the highest level since early July.