Jobless claims fell by 12,000 to 237,000 in the week ended July 8, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. That’s below economists’ estimates of 248,000, according to FactSet.
The four-week moving average was 246,750, a decrease of 6,750 from the prior week.
Continuing claims rose to 1.729 million. Economists were expecting continuing claims of 1.728 million.
Thursday’s jobless claims report comes after the monthly payrolls report showed that the U.S. added 209,000 jobs in June, a slowdown from the month before.
Wages and a tight labor market have been a main focal point for Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell as the central bank works to fight historically-high inflation. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, 92.4% of traders are anticipating another interest rate hike at the Fed’s meeting later this month.