A report released by the Labor Department on Thursday showed first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits climbed by much more than expected in the week ended July 13th.
The Labor Department said initial jobless claims rose to 243,000, an increase of 20,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 223,000.
Economists had expected initial jobless claims to edge up to 230,000 from the 222,000 originally reported for the previous week.
The report said the less volatile four-week moving average also crept up to 234,750, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised average of 233,750.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia released a report on Thursday showing the pace of growth reaccelerated by much more than expected in the month of July.
The Philly Fed said its diffusion index for current general activity jumped to 13.9 in July from 1.3 in June, with a positive reading indicating growth. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 2.9.
The report said most future activity indicators also rose, suggesting more widespread expectations for overall growth over the next six months.
At 10 am ET, the Conference Board is scheduled to release its report on leading economic indicators in the month of June. The leading economic index is expected to decrease by 0.3 percent in June after falling by 0.5 percent in May.
The Treasury Department is due to announce the details of this month’s auctions of two-year, five-year and seven-year notes at 11 am ET.
At 1:45 pm ET, Dallas Federal Reserve President Lorie Logan is scheduled to give opening remarks before the “Exploring Conventional Bank Funding Regimes in an Unconventional World” conference.
San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly is due to participate in a fireside chat before the “Exploring Conventional Bank Funding Regimes in an Unconventional World” conference at 6:05 pm ET.
At 7:30 pm ET, Federal Reserve Board Governor Michelle Bowman is scheduled to speak before the “Exploring Conventional Bank Funding Regimes in an Unconventional World” conference.