In J.B. Hunt's earnings preview, Stephens analysts said the intermodal market is past the trough but faces pricing pressures following a weak 2023 bid season.

The Labor Department reported that <strong>initial jobless claims</strong> edged lower last week, indicating the turnover of temporary workers that follows the end of year holidays is normal. Data during this time of year is extremely noisy that is typical of the holiday season. First time claims in regular state programs decreased 1,000 to 202,000 from the prior week’s upwardly revised 203,000 for the week ending January 6th. The four-week moving average dropped to 207,750 from 208,000 the prior week. Continuing claims, which include people who have received unemployment benefits for a week or more, fell 34,000 to 1.834 million for the week ending December 30th.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures changes in prices paid by consumers for goods and services, was released earlier today for the month of January and showed an increase m/m of +0.3% and +3.1% y/y vs. the prior month of +0.2% m/m and +3.4 y/y.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released the December Consumer Price Index summary today and reported an increase of 0.3% month-over-month and 3.1% year-over-year. Read more to find out how other categories performed last month.

Joshua Long, CFA, CMT joined BNN Bloomberg to discuss 2nd quarter earnings results for Olive Garden owner Darden.

The Labor Department reported that <strong>initial jobless claims </strong>decreased last week, indicating that businesses continue to be reticent to let go of workers they struggled to find over the last three years. Consumer spending has been solid over the holiday season, allowing employers to hold on to employees longer than expected. First time claims in regular state programs decreased 18,000 to 202,000 from the prior week’s upwardly revised 220,000 for the week ending December 30th. The four-week moving average dropped to 207,750 from 212,500 the prior week. Continuing claims, which include people who have received unemployment benefits for a week or more, fell 31,000 to 1.855 million for the week ending December 23rd.