The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the first time remains in 'strong labor market' mode with just 223k last week - a level it has oscillated around for three years now...

Moreover, this broad low level of initial jobless claims has not been seen since the late '60s...

Continuing claims remain around 1.9 million Americans...

For now, the effects of DOGE seem to be kept in line by the judiciary...

But continuing claims are definitely trending higher among the dominantly government-based-labor states...

...is there a surprise to come?