In the week ending June 28, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for unemployment insurance rose slightly to 315,000. The four-week moving average, a less volatile gauge of underlying labor market conditions, was also up slightly from the previous week, to 315,000. Claims have been relatively stable for the past six weeks, varying between 304,000 and 318,000. A range this low has not been sustained for more than four weeks since the recession began in late 2007.
