Today's U.S. first-time jobless claims for the week ending Feb. 14, 2026, were considered positive, showing significant improvement with 206,000 new applications. This was a decrease of 23,000 from the previous week's revised number, falling well below the 223,000–225,000 range expected by economists, indicating a stable labor market.
Key Data Highlights:
- Initial Claims: Fell by 23,000 to 206,000, the lowest level of the year, Spectrum News reported.
- Expectations: The 206K figure was significantly lower than the 223,000–225,000 predicted by analysts.
- Four-Week Moving Average: Declined slightly to 219,000, signaling continued stability, RTTNews reported.
- Market Impact: The lower-than-expected data is generally seen as bullish for the U.S. economy, indicating low layoffs, Investing.com reported.
While initial claims were very positive, continuing claims (representing people receiving benefits for more than one week) saw a slight increase to 1.869 million, note Trading Economics. However, the overall picture from this report shows a strong and stable labor market, say Zacks Investment Research.
