New applications for unemployment benefits have been hovering near historically low levels in recent weeks, as businesses hold on to workers amid a tight labor market.
Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal estimate that initial jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, held steady at a seasonally adjusted 206,000 in the week ended Dec. 18, a level unchanged from the prior week, and just above the lowest levels in a half-century. The Labor Department will release the latest data at 8:30 a.m. ET Thursday.
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