US weekly unemployment claims worse than forecast
Initial US unemployment claims rose by 15,000 to reach 297,000 in the week ended on 4 July, according to the US Department of Labor.
Economists had been calling for a print of 275,000.
The four-week moving average increased by 4,500 to 279,500.
Secondary unemployment claims, those which are not filed for the first time and referencing the week ending on 27 June, worsened by 69,000 to 2.334m.
No special factors were cited by the government to explain the move higher in the initial claims data. However, the seasonally typical retooling of car plants was cited by some market commentary as a possible explanation behind last week's rise.