A report released by the Labor Department showed a modest increase by first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended February 15th.
The Labor Department said initial jobless claims rose to 219,000, an increase of 5,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 214,000.
Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 215,000 from the 213,000 originally reported for the previous week.
Meanwhile, the report said the less volatile four-week moving average edged down to 215,250, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised average of 216,250.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia also released a report showing Philadelphia-area manufacturing activity continued to expand in the month of February, although the index of activity in the sector pulled back sharply.
The Philly Fed said its diffusion index for current general activity plunged to 18.1 in February after skyrocketing to 44.3 in January, but a positive reading still indicates growth. Economists had expected the index to slump to 20.0.
Looking ahead, the Philly Fed said firms continue to expect growth over the next six months, although expectations were less widespread.
At 9:45 am ET, Chicago Federal Reserve President Austan Goolsbee is scheduled to participate in a moderated question-and-answer session before the Chicagoland Chamber Mid-Market Chicago event.
The Conference Board is due to release its report on leading economic indicators in the month of January at 10 am ET. The leading economic index is expected to come in unchanged in January after edging down by 0.1 percent in December.
At 11 am ET, the Energy Information Administration is scheduled to release its report on crude oil inventories in the week ended February 14th. Crude oil inventories are expected to increase by 3.0 million barrels after jumping by 4.1 million barrels in the previous week.
The Treasury Department is also due to announce the details of this month’s auctions of two-year, five-year and seven-year notes at 11 am ET.
At 12:05 pm ET, St. Louis Federal Reserve President Alberto Musalem is scheduled to speak and participate in a moderated conversation on the U.S. economy and monetary policy before the Economic Club of New York.
Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr is due to speak on “Supervision and Regulation” at the Georgetown University Law Center at 2 pm ET.
At 5 pm ET, Federal Reserve Board Governor Adriana Kugler is scheduled to speak on “Navigating Inflation Waves While Riding on the Phillips Curve” before the 2025 Whittington Lecture event hosted by Georgetown University.