Weekly US jobless claims dip despite hurricanes
US jobless claims retreated by slightly more than expected over the last reference week, although the government statisticians cautioned that hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria had impacted the claims data.
For the seven day stretch to 7 October, initial claims were lower by 15,000 to 243,000, according to the Department of Labor.
Economists at Barclays had anticipated a print of 250,000.
Meanwhile, the four-week moving average was down by 9,500 to 257,500.
Secondary unemployment claims, those which are not filed for the first time and referencing the week ending on 30 September, slipped by 32,000 to 1.889m.