Initial jobless claims fell 36,000 to 383,000 during the week ended February 5. A large part of the nation experienced severely inclement weather during this week, which suggests that the initial jobless claims numbers of the past week did not capture the entire count. Next week's report should give a better read on initial jobless claims. Continuing claims, which lag initial jobless claims by one week, dropped 47,000 to 3.888 million after a decline of 74,000 the prior week.

It is unclear if the decline in continuing claims is from people finding employment or they have dropped out as their eligibility for unemployment insurance expired. The only conclusion that can be drawn, for now, is that labor market conditions show a slow improvement.

Asha Bangalore — Senior Vice President and Economist

http://www.northerntrust.com

Asha Bangalore is Vice President and Economist at The Northern Trust Company, Chicago. Prior to joining the bank in 1994, she was Consultant to savings and loan institutions and commercial banks at Financial & Economic Strategies Corporation, Chicago.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of The Northern Trust Company. The Northern Trust Company does not warrant the accuracy or completeness of information contained herein, such information is subject to change and is not intended to influence your investment decisions.

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