In the week ending June 7, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for unemployment insurance was 317,000, which represents an increase of 4,000 from the previous week's upwardly revised level (from 312,000 to 313,000). The four-week moving average, a less volatile gauge of underlying labor market conditions, was up 4,750 to 315,250. While slightly elevated from the previous week, the claims figure still represents a significant decrease from the recessionary peak and is roughly in line with prerecession levels.
