Applications for U.S. unemployment benefits fell last week, highlighting the seasonal swings in the data at this time of year.

Initial claims decreased by 10,000 to 214,000 in the week ended Dec. 20, according to Labor Department data released Wednesday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 224,000 applications.

Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving benefits, rose to 1.92 million in the previous week, rebounding from a significant decline at the end of last month.

Applications have been volatile in recent weeks, as is typical around holidays. New claims spiked at the beginning of the month from a three-year low over Thanksgiving, and they’re now trending lower again.

The four-week moving average of initial applications, a metric that helps smooth out volatility, also fell last week.

Overall, Wednesday’s figures are consistent with a labor market seeing relatively low layoffs, a trend that has remained intact throughout the year despite heightened economic uncertainty. While multiple large employers, including PepsiCo Inc. and HP Inc., have announced job cuts recently, those plans have yet to translate into a notable pickup in actual layoffs.

A report Tuesday showed consumer confidence fell in December for a fifth straight month, partially due to downbeat views on the current state of the labor market. The share of consumers who think jobs are hard to get rose to the highest since early 2021.

Before adjusting for seasonal factors, initial claims increased last week. New Jersey, Oregon and Washington state saw the largest gains.

(With assistance from Chris Middleton and Michael Sasso.)

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