Initial jobless claims in the US rose by 8,000 from the previous week to 208,000 on the week ending January 3rd, loosely in line with market expectations of 210,000, and remaining firmly below the average through the previous year. In the meantime, continuing jobless claims rose by 56,000 to 1,914,000 in the earlier period, above market expectations of 1,900,000. The relatively low initial claim count against the higher level of outstanding unemployment extended the view that the US labor market has a slow pace of hiring against a steady level of firing. Meanwhile, initial unemployment claims filed by federal employees, which have recently been under scrutiny due to the federal government shutdown, fell by 333 to 479 on the final week of December.