by Calculated Risk on 8/08/2013 08:30:00 AM

The DOL reports:

In the week ending August 3, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 333,000, an increase of 5,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 328,000. The 4-week moving average was 335,500, a decrease of 6,250 from the previous week's revised average of 341,750.

The previous week was revised up from 326,000.

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

Click on graph for larger image.


The dashed line on the graph is the current 4-week average. The four-week average of weekly unemployment claims decreased to 335,500.

The 4-week average is at the lowest level since November 2007 (before the recession started).  Claims were below the 336,000 consensus forecast.