After reporting a rebound in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the previous week, the Labor Department released a report on Thursday showing that initial jobless claims pulled back by much more than expected in the week ended June 18th.
The report said initial jobless claims fell to 259,000, a decrease of 18,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 277,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to edge down to 270,000.
With the bigger than expected decrease, jobless claims hit their lowest level since dropping to 257,000 in the week ended April 23rd.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.