THE NUMBER IS OUT:

It's a bit weaker than expected. 377K was ahead of the 370K that was consensus, and well up from the 352K last week.

So not great, but for a noisy number still in a benign range.

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ORIGINAL POST: Here comes the gold standard of high-frequency economic data.

Initial jobless claims, due out at 8:30 AM ET, are expected to come in at 370K, a bounce from 352K.

Anything in that range should be fine, so long as there isn't a sharp spike towards 400k.

This number has been steadily grinding lower, and has been the surest indicator that the recovery is on the mend.

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