U.S. First-Time Unemployment Benefit Claims Down Slightly

First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly saw a modest decrease in the week ended April 12th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday.

The report said initial jobless claims dipped to 215,000, a decrease of 9,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 224,000.

Economists had expected initial jobless claims to inch up to 225,000 from the 223,000 originally reported for the previous week.

The Labor Department said the less volatile four-week moving average also edged down to 220,750, a decrease of 2,500 from the previous week’s revised average of 223,250.

A separate report released by the Commerce Department on Thursday showed new residential construction in the U.S. pulled back by much more than expected in the month of March.

The Commerce Department said housing starts plunged by 11.4 percent to an annual rate of 1.324 million in March after surging by 9.8 percent to a revised rate of 1.494 million in February.

Economists had expected housing starts to tumble by 5.4 percent to an annual rate of 1.420 million from the 1.501 million originally reported for the previous month.

Meanwhile, the report said building permits jumped by 1.6 percent to an annual rate of 1.482 million in March after falling by 1.0 percent to a revised rate of 1.459 million in February.

Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, were expected to decrease by 0.4 percent to an annual rate of 1.450 million from the 1.456 million originally reported for the previous month.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia also released a report on Thursday showing a steep drop by its reading on regional manufacturing activity in the month of April.

The Philly Fed said its diffusion index for current general activity plummeted to a negative 26.4 in April from a positive 12.5 in March, with a negative reading indicating contraction. Economists had expected the index to slump to a positive 2.0.

Looking ahead, the Philly Fed said future activity indicators continue to suggest subdued expectations for growth over the next six months, although the diffusion index for future general activity inched up to 6.9 in April from 5.6 in March.

At 11 am ET, the Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the details of this month’s auctions of two-year, five-year and seven-year notes.

Federal Reserve Board Governor Michael Barr is due to speak on “Cybersecurity in the Banking System” and participate in a moderated discussion before the 2025 State-of-the-Field Conference on Cyber Risk to Financial Stability at 11:45 am ET.