Weekly Initial Unemployment Claims Increase to 235,000

The DOL reported:

In the week ending July 2, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 235,000, an increase of 4,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 231,000. The 4-week moving average was 232,500, an increase of 750 from the previous week's unrevised average of 231,750.
emphasis added

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 increased to 232,500.

The previous week was unrevised.

Weekly claims were higher than the consensus forecast.