US weekly jobless claims fall; job growth appears steady in July
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 7,000 to a seasonally adjusted 221,000 for the week ended July 12, the Labor Department said on Thursday (Jul 17). Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 235,000 claims for the latest week.
Motor vehicle assembly plant closures for reasons including maintenance and annual retooling for new models could be influencing the data. Auto manufacturers typically idle assembly lines in summer, though the timing often varies, which could throw off the model that the government uses to strip out seasonal fluctuations from the data.
Layoffs have remained generally low, though economic uncertainty stemming from trade policy has left companies hesitant to increase hiring. President Donald Trump last week announced higher duties would come into effect on August 1 for imports from a range of countries, including Mexico, Japan, Canada and Brazil, and the European Union.
Trump in April slapped a 10 per cent duty on nearly all imports, while giving nations a 90-day period to negotiate trade deals.
The Federal Reserve's Beige Book report on Wednesday described hiring as having 'remained generally cautious' in early July, attributed by many of the US central bank's contacts to 'ongoing economic and policy uncertainty.'
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The Fed said while reports of layoffs were limited in all industries, they were 'somewhat more common among manufacturers.' It noted that 'many contacts expected to postpone major hiring and layoff decisions until uncertainty diminished.'
The claims report covered the period during which the government surveyed employers for the nonfarm payrolls component of July's employment report. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 147,000 jobs in June, though nearly half of the positions were in the government sector, mostly state education.
Tepid hiring is underscored by the growing number of people collecting unemployment checks. The number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, increased 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1.956 million during the week ending July 5. The start of a new quarter could have influenced the current level of the so-called continuing claims.
'Eligibility for benefits can be affected by calendar-quarter considerations, leading to large swings in the underlying data,' said Lou Crandall, chief economist at Wrightson ICAP.
Next week's continuing claims data could offer more clarity on the health of the labour market in July. Economists said the elevated continuing claims reading suggested an increase in the unemployment rate. While the jobless rate fell to 4.1 per cent in June after holding at 4.2 per cent for three straight months, that was mostly because people dropped out of the labour force. REUTERS
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Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Big Tech earnings strength is bright light in murky stock market
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'While things aren't perfect, and valuations are nearing a level that has acted as a ceiling in the past, we still have a high degree of optimism, especially as we go up the market-cap spectrum.' Alphabet started the season off by reporting strong sales, lifted by artificial intelligence. Last week, Apple posted its strongest revenue growth in more than three years, while Meta Platforms spiked to a record as it beat expectations and outlined aggressive spending on AI. Microsoft Corp. reported robust strength in its cloud business on the back of AI demand, enough to temporarily lift it to a US$4 trillion market capitalisation, only the second company ever to do so. The stock has risen for 10 straight weeks, its longest streak since 2023. Amazon was the exception, offering a tepid forecast due to relatively slow growth in its cloud-computing division and heavy investments into AI. From here, investors will turn to chip behemoth Nvidia, which reports at the end of the month. 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While Wall Street has long been broadly positive on big tech, last week's results reinforced it's continuing potential. The Magnificent Seven are expected to see earnings growth of 24.2 per cent this year, a dramatic increase from the 21.4 per cent pace that was predicted just a month ago, according to Bloomberg Intelligence data. Revenues are anticipated to rise 13.4 per cent, up from the 11.5 per cent pace seen in early July. Of course, that level of growth would represent a deceleration from last year, when the Mag Seven's net income rose 36 per cent and revenue gained 14 per cent. But the group continues to outgrow the broader market, which is expected to see earnings expand by 8.9 per cent in 2025 on revenue growth of 5.5 per cent. 'This slowing is understandable given how quickly these names were growing, and for how long,' said Mr Michael Nell, a senior investment analyst and portfolio manager at UBS Asset Management. 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AsiaOne
2 hours ago
- AsiaOne
How Pakistan shot down India's cutting-edge fighter using Chinese gear, Asia News
ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI — Just after midnight on May 7, the screen in the Pakistan Air Force's operations room lit up in red with the positions of dozens of active enemy planes across the border in India. Air Chief Mshl. Zaheer Sidhu had been sleeping on a mattress just off that room for days in anticipation of an Indian assault. New Delhi had blamed Islamabad for backing militants who carried out an attack the previous month in Indian Kashmir, which killed 26 civilians. Despite Islamabad denying any involvement, India had vowed a response, which came in the early hours of May 7 with air strikes on Pakistan. Sidhu ordered Pakistan's prized Chinese-made J-10C jets to scramble. A senior Pakistani Air Force (PAF) official, who was present in the operations room, said Sidhu instructed his staff to target Rafales, a French-made fighter that is the jewel of India's fleet and had never been downed in battle. "He wanted Rafales," said the official. 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'Situational awareness' Reuters spoke to eight Pakistani and two Indian officials to piece together an account of the aerial battle, which marked the start of four days of fighting between the two nuclear-armed neighbours that caused alarm in Washington. The officials all spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss national security matters. Not only did Islamabad have the element of surprise with its missiles' range, the Pakistani and Indian officials said, but it managed to more efficiently connect its military hardware to surveillance on the ground and in the air, providing it with a clearer picture of the battlefield. Such networks, known as "kill chains", have become a crucial element of modern warfare. Four Pakistani officials said they created a "kill chain", or a multi-domain operation, by linking air, land and space sensors. 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Its Indian-made BrahMos supersonic cruise missile repeatedly sliced through Pakistan's air defences, according to officials on both sides. On May 10, India said it struck at least nine air bases and radar sites in Pakistan. It also hit a surveillance plane parked in a hangar in southern Pakistan, according to Indian and Pakistani officials. A ceasefire was agreed later that day, after US officials held talks with both sides. 'Live inputs' In the aftermath of the episode, India's deputy army chief Lt. Gen. Rahul Singh accused Pakistan of receiving "live inputs" from China during the battles, implying radar and satellite feeds. He did not provide evidence and Islamabad denies the allegation. When asked at a July briefing about Beijing's military partnership with Pakistan, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters the work was "part of the normal co-operation between the two countries and does not target any third party." Beijing's air chief Lt. Gen. Wang Gang visited Pakistan in July to discuss how Islamabad had used Chinese equipment to put together the "kill chain" for the Rafale, two PAF officials said. China did not respond when asked about that interaction. The Pakistani military said in a statement in July that Wang had expressed "keen interest in learning from PAF's battle-proven experience in Multi Domain Operations". ALSO READ: Defence minister denies India bowed to pressure to end fighting with Pakistan
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
After a lag, US consumers begin to feel the pinch of tariffs
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