There are two types of jobless claims, initial and continuing. Initial jobless claims measures the number of people filing for unemployment benefits or insurance for the first time during the last week. Continuing jobless claims comprise of people who have been getting joblessness benefits for a while. The jobless claims are most important indicators on state unemployment situation and health of the economy.
Due to the spread of pandemic COVID-19 virus, weekly statics of initial and continuing jobless claims in United State of America, sored to historical level as firms reduce their work due to social distancing. According to US labor department, from mid-March to April 18th, more than 26 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits.
The data of initial jobless claims is released on weekly basis each Thursday at 8:30 AM ET by the Department of Labor. The initial jobless claims report get more press due to its high impact on health of economy. Lower the initial jobless claims means less number of people willing to work which is a good sign for financial market and economy health while higher the initial jobless claims, means less jobs and high number of unemployed people.
Reading higher than expected taken as bearish/negative for USD while reading lower as expected taken as bullish/positive for USD traders.