US unemployment claims dipped last week, showing stability in job market

Labor market stability, together with signs of mild inflation, if sustained could allow the Fed to keep interest rates unchanged in September. That remains the current market expectation despite inflation still running above the Fed's 2% target for five years now.

The number of people receiving unemployment benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, rose 18,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1.799 million during the week ended August 8, the claims report showed. The increase reversed a drop of the same amount the prior week and kept continued claims at their relatively low trend level. Like initial claims, they remain well below a year ago at this time.

Aug. 20 (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits slipped last week, suggesting that the labor market remains stable despite a surprise drop in employment in July and leaving the Federal Reserve in position to keep its focus on containing inflation.