Halister News

(Bloomberg) -- Initial jobless claims seen at 255k in wk ended Jan. 7 vs 235k prior wk (forecast range 240k to 275k); tallies number of people making first-time claims for unemployment benefits.

• Filings have been below 300k for 96 consecutive weeks, longest period since 1970
  • “Claims may advance in the coming weeks amid General Motors’ plan to idle five plants in January and the anticipated job losses surrounding the intended store closings and worker furloughs at Macy’s”: Bloomberg Insight
• Import price index seen rising 0.7% m/m in Dec. after falling 0.3% in Nov. (forecast range +0.2% to +1.5%); tracks changes in prices of goods produced abroad, sold domestically