Continued Volatility in Week-to-week Initial Claims
OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Employment Security Commission (OESC) reports that statewide unemployment claims increased across all reporting categories for the week ending Aug. 13.
“We continue to see volatility in the weekly initial claims, as well as our overall week-to-week unemployment claims numbers,” said Shelley Zumwalt, OESC Executive Director. “OESC is monitoring the weekly numbers and any trends that could indicate economic factors are impacting claims reporting. The agency is also keeping a watchful eye on claims volumes in major industries that have an outsized impact on the workforce in Oklahoma. We will continue to support Oklahomans by providing the information and resources they need to secure employment.”
Weekly Unemployment Numbers for Week Ending Aug. 13
- For the file week ending Aug. 13, the number of initial claims, unadjusted, totaled 3,976, an increase of 1,419 from the previous week's level of 2,557.
- For the same file week, the less volatile initial claims’ four-week moving average was 3,123, an increase of 324 from the previous week's average of 2,799.
- The unadjusted number of continued claims totaled 11,375, an increase of 114 from the previous week’s level of 11,261.
- For the same file week, the less volatile continued claims’ four-week moving average was 11,384, an increase of 48 from the previous week's average of 11,336.
Nationally, the advance figure for seasonally-adjusted initial claims for the week ending Aug. 20 was 243,000, a decrease of 2,000 from the previous week's revised level, the U.S. Department of Labor (U.S. DOL) reports. The four-week moving average was 247,000, an increase of 1,500 from the previous week's revised average.
The national weekly seasonally adjusted initial claims report is one of 10 components in the Composite Index of Leading Economic Indicators. To smooth out the volatility in the weekly initial claims data, a four-week moving average is used to assess trends.
