Investing.com - The number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week rose more than expected, but remained in territory consistent with a strengthening labor market, according to data released on Thursday.
The Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending June 26 increased by 10,000 to 281,000 from 271,000 in the previous week.
Economists had expected jobless claims to tick down to 270,000.
Continuing jobless claims rose to 2.26 million from 2.24 million in the preceding week.
The four-week moving average was 274,750 from the previous week’s total of 273,750.
The monthly average is seen as a more accurate gauge of labor trends because it reduces volatility in the week-to-week data.
The US dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was at 96.27, down from around 96.59 ahead of the report.
U.S. futures were higher, with Dow futures pointing to a gain of 0.29%, S&P 500 futures up 0.25% and the Nasdaq 100 futures adding 0.31%.