Jobless claims are in line with expectations and in line with last week
4 minutes ago
The economists hit the mark with their forecasts for initial jobless claims in January.
The Labor Department reported 217,000 workers applying for unemployment insurance for the week ending March 2. After adjusting last week's data slightly upward, the report showed the number of initial claims remained unchanged this week. The four-week moving average, which highlights the larger trend in initial jobless claims, fell slightly from the previous week to 212,250.
The weekly jobless claims come after yesterday's private sector jobs report showed job creation and rising wages in February. Tomorrow, the Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the government's monthly wages and salaries report for February, in which economists will get more data on wages and unemployment, key indicators for the Federal Reserve as it monitors inflation.
-Terry Lane
The trade deficit is growing again
11 minutes ago
The U.S. imported $67.4 billion more in goods and services than it exported in January as the trade deficit widened by $3.3 billion from December.
It was the fourth time in five months that the trade deficit widened, as deficits with Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, Canada and other trading partners widened.
The US imported more cars, computers and semiconductors while reducing oil and cell phone consumption. On the other hand, more cars were delivered while oil exports fell.
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