<H3>• U.S. Initial Unemployment Claims — 27 December 2014 </H3>

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In the week ending December 27, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 298,000, an increase of 17,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 280,000 to 281,000. The 4-week moving average was 290,750, an increase of 250 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 290,250 to 290,500. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.8 percent for the week ending December 20, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending December 20 was 2,353,000, a decrease of 53,000 from the previous week's revised level. The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending December 13 were in Alaska (4.9), New Jersey (3.1), Puerto Rico (3.1), Pennsylvania (2.9), California (2.8), Connecticut (2.7), Montana (2.7), the Virgin Islands (2.7), Nevada (2.6), and Illinois (2.5). The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending December 20 were in Kentucky (+4,151), Ohio (+3,991), Michigan (+2,093), Missouri (+1,739), and Iowa (+1,569), while the largest decreases were in California (-16,139), South Carolina (-1,110), Florida (-985), West Virginia (-604), and Maine (-296). Note: “Insured unemployment rate” refers to individuals who are unemployed and receiving UC benefits. See the complete report at this link: USDOL-BLS NOTE: This report is provided with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in providing legal, financial, accounting or other professional advice. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. Furthermore, while we do our best to ensure that these data are accurate, we suggest that any entity making decisions based on these numbers should verify the data at their source prior to making such decisions.

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