US: Weekly initial claims was 233,000, an increase of 17,000 from previous week

"In the week ending January 20, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 233,000, an increase of 17,000 from the previous week's revised level," the US Department of Labor reported on Thursday.

Key highlights

The previous week's level was revised down by 4,000 from 220,000 to 216,000.

The 4-week moving average was 240,000, a decrease of 3,500 from the previous week's revised average. 

The claims taking procedures in Puerto Rico and in the Virgin Islands have still not returned to normal.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.4 percent for the week ending January 13, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised rate.

The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending January 13 was 1,937,000, a decrease of 28,000 from the previous week's revised level.