High-Frequency Update: 12-28-25

Dec. 28, 2025

By George W. Hammond, EBRC research professor

U.S. initial claims for unemployment insurance rose last week

Third quarter 2020 forecast update webinar

Arizona initial claims for unemployment insurance were stable over the week for the week ended December 20, at 2,326. That was down 12.1% over the year and down 29.4% from 2019.

U.S. weekly initial claims for unemployment insurance rose to 264,009 for the week ended December 20, up from 255,177 the prior week. That was down 4.2% over the year and down 8.1% from 2019.

Data for the U.S. hotel occupancy rate has not yet been updated for the week ended December 20.

U.S. movie box office sales skyrocketed to $278.2 million for the week ended December 25, up from $103.8 million the prior week. That was down 10.6% over the year and down 42.7% from 2019. New movie releases were down 33.3% from 2019.

U.S. TSA traveler throughput rose to 17.5 million for the week ended December 20, up from 16.6 million the prior week. That was down 0.8% over the year but up 7.3% from 2019.

Weekly data on Arizona new business applications continue to be published by the Census Bureau, but only on a monthly basis. Weekly data for November ranged from a high of 1,660 to a low of 520 (during the holiday week). Overall, new business applications remain strong.

Data on seated diners at restaurants using the OpenTable app is no longer being updated to compare the current week to 2019 results.

As of October 15, 2022, Google stopped updating mobility data.

Key News Articles and Research (subscription may be required)

Curated by Valorie Rice, Senior Business Information Specialist

Arizona and general topics: Has the CHIPS Act created jobs? (Brookings 12/18)
Automation / AI: AI in the office and the factory (FRBC)
Demographic / socioeconomic / Census: Using tax data to assess social and economic mobility (Urban Inst 12/22)
Economy: Understanding commodity prices (FRBSL 12/17)
Education / early childhood development: Lots of Arizona schools are closing. Here are 4 reasons why (KJZZ 12/15)
Energy / environment / infrastructure: Which states are leading the data center race? (Governing 12/22)
Housing / real estate: Developers snap up Arizona land as multifamily supply expected to dwindle by 2027 (PBJ 12/22)
Mexico/trade: A look at U.S. service export trends (FRBSL 12/22)
Prices/inflation: US tariffs are having an uneven effect on holiday prices and purchases (AP 12/15)
Public finance: Tucson to increase rates for four utility, business taxes (ADS 12/18)
Wages/income/wealth: The same but different (Brookings 12/11)
Workforce/employment/labor market: Young adults and the softening U.S. labor market: a warning sign? (FRBSL 12/15)

Weekly Indicators

Use your cursor as a tooltip and click on charts to view values. Click on the names of indicators listed at the bottom any chart to switch them on/off to view fewer at one time and make comparisons. Icons allow you to download and share.

Note: The official initial claims for unemployment insurance numbers for the U.S. are released every Thursday morning covering the week ending on the previous Saturday.

The U.S. Census Bureau continues to produce weekly estimates; however, the weekly estimate files are published as part of the Monthly Business Formation Statistics (BFS) Release.One key dataset with these estimates is High-Propensity Business Applications, a subset of total weekly business applications in Arizona that measures the number of applications with a high-propensity of turning into a business with a payroll, based on various factors. These data reflect weekly applications for Employer Identification Numbers (EINs) in Arizona which are likely to result in employment and wages. These include applications: (a) from a corporate entity, (b) that indicate they are hiring employees, purchasing a business or changing organizational type, (c) that provide a first wages-paid date (planned wages); or (d) that have a NAICS industry code in manufacturing (31-33), retail stores (44), health care (62), or restaurants/food service (72). Applications for EINs occur before the jobs and wages are added, so this is a leading indicator. Read more about the Business Application dataset from the U.S. Census Bureau.