#MerlinTradingCompetition US unemployment claims data showed an unexpected decline in weekly applications to 227,000, compared to expectations of 230,000, indicating relative stability in the labor market during May 2025. Despite economic challenges due to President Trump's trade policies, companies are still reluctant to lay off workers, but economists expect a rise in unemployment cases in the second half of the year due to the impact of tariffs on supply chains and inflation.
On the other hand, job growth has slowed to less than 100,000 per month, with the long-term unemployment rate increasing to 10.4 weeks. In the markets, futures contracts for the "Standard & Poor's" and "Dow Jones" and "NASDAQ" indices fell, while the dollar index rose. Gold prices also dropped by 0.25%, as investors reacted to conflicting economic indicators and growth slowdown expectations.
