Weekly Initial Unemployment Claims increased to 231,000

The DOL reported:

In the week ending December 29, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 231,000, an increase of 10,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 5,000 from 216,000 to 221,000. The 4-week moving average was 218,750, a decrease of 500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 1,250 from 218,000 to 219,250.
emphasis added

The previous week was revised up.

The following graph shows the 4-week moving average of weekly claims since 1971.

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 218,750.

This was above the consensus forecast. Probably most of the increase in claims is related to the government shutdown.