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U.S. weekly jobless claims rise by 13K to 242,000
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(Kitco News) - Growth in the U.S. labor market continues to wane as the number of workers applying for first-time unemployment benefits rose in line with expectations
Thursday, the U.S. Labor Department said that weekly jobless claims rose by 13,000 to 242,000, up from the previous week's revised estimate of 229,000 claims.
The latest labor market data was relatively in line with expectations. According to consensus forecasts, economists were expecting to see jobless claims rise at a faster pace to 239,000.
The gold market is not seeing much reaction to the latest numbers as investors focus the Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy decision. Gold prices are seeing solid gains Thursday. June gold futures last traded at $2,045.10 an ounce, up 0.38% on the day.
The four-week moving average for new claims – often viewed as a more reliable measure of the labor market since it flattens week-to-week volatility – fell slightly to 239,500, an increase of 3,500 claims from the previous week's revised average.
Continuing jobless claims, which represent the number of people already receiving benefits, were at 1.805 million during the week ending April 22, falling by 38,000 from the previous week's revised level.
