Jobless Claims Fall Again, Wholesale Inventories Rise on Increased Confidence

- Initial Jobless Claims for last week rose to 277K versus estimates of 285K and 273K the prior week.
- Continuing Claims rose to 2557K versus estimates of 2518K and 2497K prior.
- Wholesale Inventories for December rose 1.0% versus estimates of a .5% gain and a .5% rise in November.

BOTTOM LINE: The number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits rose less than forecast last week, more evidence of strength in the labor market, Bloomberg reported. The four-week moving average of 276,500 is the lowest since right after the stock market bubble burst in April 2000. The unemployment rate among those available to receive benefits, which tracks the US unemployment rate, rose to 2% from 1.9% the prior week. The labor market, while very healthy, is likely not quite as strong as recent data suggest. I continue to believe it will remain healthy over the intermediate-term without generating substantial unit labor costs increases.

Inventories at US wholesalers increased more than forecast in December as companies geared up for improving sales, Bloomberg said. Sales rose 1.0%, the most since September. The inventory-to-sales ratio remained at 1.15 months. I continue to believe inventory rebuilding will boost economic growth over the intermediate-term as executives gain more confidence in the durability of the current expansion and demand remains healthy.