Updated: 22-Jan-26 09:16 ET

Initial Claims for the Week Ended Jan 17

Updated: 22-Jan-26 09:16 ET

Highlights

• Initial jobless claims for the week ending January 17 were just 200,000 (Briefing.com consensus: 200,000), up 1,000 from the prior week's revised level.
• Continuing jobless claims for the week ending January 10 were 1.849 million, down 26,000 from the prior week's revised level.

Key Factors

• The four-week moving average for initial claims decreased by 3,750 to 201,500. That is the lowest level since January 13, 2024.
• The four-week moving average for continuing claims decreased by 16,250 to 1,870,750.
• The total number of continued weeks claimed for benefits in all programs for the week ending January 3 was 2,335,637, an increase of 117,116 from the previous week. Claims filed in the comparable week a year ago totaled 2,301,359.

Big Picture

• The key takeaway from the report is that the low level of initial jobless claims substantiates the view that the labor market is still operating in a low-firing environment, which is supportive for consumer spending activity and the growth outlook.

Category	Jan 17	Jan 10	Jan 3	Dec 27	Dec 20
Initial Claims	200K	198K	207K	200K	215K
4-Wk Moving Avg	202K	205K	212K	219K	217K
Continued Benefits		1849K	1875K	1903K	1856K
4-Wk Moving Avg		1871K	1887K	1890K	1871K