**MNI 5 THINGS: US Claims Below Expectations At 210k>

--5 Things We Learned From the August 18 Claims Data

By Kevin Kastner, Shikha Dave, and Harrison Clarke

     WASHINGTON (MNI) - The following are the key points from the weekly 

US unemployment insurance claims data for the August 18 survey week 

released by the Labor Department Thursday: 

     - The initial claims data fell by 2,000 to 210,000 in the August 18 

employment survey week, below the 215,000 level expected by analysts in 

an MNI survey, and following no revision in the previous week. 

     - The level of initial claims was up 2,000 from the decades low 

208,000 level in the July 14 employment survey week, and still 

represents a very tight labor market. 

     - The four-week moving average fell by 1,750 to 213,750 this week,  

and it was down 7,000 from the 220,750 average in the July 14 employment 

survey week. The average could fall next week as the 219,000 level in 

the July 28 week rolls out of the equation. 

     - Continuing claims fell by 2,000 to 1.727m in the August 11 week, 

while the four-week average decreased by 5,000 to 1.736m. The insured 

unemployment rate was unchanged at 1.2% in the previous week, down from 

1.4% in the same week a year ago. 

     - Claims data were estimated for Maine.

     ** MNI Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 ** 

[TOPICS: MAUDS$,M$U$$$,MAUDR$]