Initial and Continued Claims' Four-week Moving Averages Decline
OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Employment Security Commission (OESC) reports that initial claims and continued claims increased slightly, while both the initial claims’ and continued claims’ four-week moving averages declined for the week ending Feb. 12.
“As we continue to hit historic lows for claims volumes, some volatility should be expected in the numbers we report weekly,” said Shelley Zumwalt, OESC Executive Director. “Oklahoma’s economy continues to flourish with low unemployment rates and high workforce participation. As an agency, we are committed to continuing to connect job seekers with high-quality employers.”
Weekly Unemployment Numbers for Week Ending Feb. 12
- For the file week ending Feb. 12, the number of initial claims, unadjusted, totaled 1,740, an increase of 21 from the previous week's level of 1,719.
- For the same file week, the less volatile initial claims’ four-week moving average was 1,920, a decrease of 125 from the previous week's average of 2,045.
- The number of continued claims totaled 12,720, an increase of 31 from the previous week’s level of 12,689.
- Continued claims’ four-week moving average was 12,842, a decrease of 75 from the previous week's average of 12,917.
Nationally, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for the week ending Feb. 19 was 232,000, a decrease of 17,000 from the previous week's revised level, the U.S. Department of Labor (U.S. DOL) reports. The four-week moving average was 236,250, a decrease of 7,250 from the previous week's revised average. For the week ending Feb. 12, the U.S. DOL reports the advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.1%, unchanged from the previous week's revised rate.
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.
