Overview
- Initial unemployment claims, which the Labor Department reported Thursday, rose by 16,000 to 219,000 for the week ended April 4.
- Continuing claims fell by 38,000 to 1.794 million for the week ended March 28, a level shaped by benefit limits in most states.
- Fed minutes from the March 17–18 meeting show more officials open to rate hikes, with the policy rate still at 3.50% to 3.75%.
- Economists expect March consumer prices to jump as much as 1.0% month over month after oil and gasoline costs climbed.
- Oil remains volatile after President Trump announced a two-week ceasefire conditioned on Tehran reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a flare-up that pushed gasoline above $4 a gallon and rattled markets in March.