<H3>• U.S. Initial Unemployment Claims – 03 May 2014 </H3>

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In the week ending May 3, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 319,000, a decrease of 26,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 344,000 to 345,000. The 4-week moving average was 324,750, an increase of 4,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 320,000 to 320,250. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.0 percent for the week ending April 26, a decrease of 0.1 percentage point from the previous week's unrevised rate of 2.1 percent. The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending April 19 were in Alaska (4.9), New Jersey (3.5), Connecticut (3.4), Puerto Rico (3.3), California (3.2), Illinois (3.0), Pennsylvania (3.0), Nevada (2.9), Maine (2.6), and Michigan (2.6). The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending April 26 were in New York (+23,523), Massachusetts (+3,983), Rhode Island (+1,080), Oregon (+959), and Delaware (+956), while the largest decreases were in Michigan (- 6,642), New Jersey (-2,269), Pennsylvania (-1,704), Maryland (-1,670), and California (-1,237). Note: “Insured unemployment rate” refers to individuals who are unemployed and receiving UC benefits. See the complete report at this link: USDOL-BLS

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