The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the first time fell to just 205k last week (well below the 215k expected and down from 213k prior). This is back near the lowest reading for initial claims ever having gone nowhere for five years…

Continuing jobless claims also remain below the 1.9 million Maginot Line, showing no sign of increasing layoffs…

Finally, as a reminder, sentiment surveys suggest the labor market is bifurcated with ‘jobs hard to get’ but joblessness not surging…

That chart reinforces the ‘no hire, no fire’ economy remains the status quo – no worse, no better.