US weekly initial claims fall as labour market stabilises

On 13 February, US initial jobless claims fell last week, indicating that the job market remained stable in early February. The U.S. Department of Labour announced on Thursday that the number of initial jobless claims fell by 7,000 seasonally adjusted to 213,000 for the week ending 8 February. So far this year, the number of people filing for unemployment benefits has been trending downward, in line with an unemployment rate that is at historically low levels. That's helping to bolster the economic expansion, allowing the Federal Reserve to pause in cutting interest rates as it assesses the impact of the Trump administration's policies. Economists believe Trump's push for mass deportations of undocumented immigrants, import tariffs and tax cuts will lead to inflation. But despite low layoffs, job opportunities for the unemployed are no longer as plentiful as they were about a year ago, and businesses are taking a wait-and-see approach.