US weekly jobless claims fall to 206,000, below expectations

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits for the first time fell last week, coming in below market expectations, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.

Seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims decreased by 6,000 to 206,000 in the week ending Aug. 15.

The figure was below market expectations of 210,000.

The previous week’s reading was revised upward by 3,000 to 212,000.

The four-week moving average, which smooths out weekly volatility, rose by 4,250 to 204,000.

Continuing claims, which measure the number of people receiving unemployment benefits, increased by 18,000 to 1.799 million in the week ending Aug. 8.

The four-week moving average for continuing claims climbed by 2,500 to 1.789 million.

The insured unemployment rate remained unchanged at 1.2%.

In July, the US economy lost 23,000 jobs, despite expectations of an 80,000 increase.

The unemployment rate fell to 4.1% in July, from 4.2% in June.