Traders got some second tier economic data to digest Thursday. In the U.S., the news was poor, with jobless claims last week rising 5,000 to 439,000.

Economists had expected claims to continue their decline. “Continuing claims added to the bad news by rising to a 20-year high,” comments RBC Financial. “Economists consider the 400,000 level as the threshold that must be crossed before the job market can be considered to be improving, and today’s release shows the United States is still some distance from that mark.”

“Although this was the 21st consecutive week above that mark, there are reasons to treat this release with caution,” counsels RBC. “The survey week was shortened by the July 4 holiday, making comparisons awkward. It was also the first week of the traditional summer auto plant retooling shutdowns, another reason for higher initial claims. Nevertheless, the trend is in the wrong direction and the news was bad at a time when the economy could use some good news.”

RBC says that the claims data from the first two weeks of July will be a negative influence on U.S. growth prospects, jeopardizing the recent upswell of support for the dollar. “In comparison to sceptical bond markets, however, we have a more upbeat view of the U.S. economy in the coming quarters,” it says.

The only data in Canada was the new house price index, which rose 0.6% from April to May. This was double expectations, RBC says, and one of the higher monthly increases seen since 2001.

“When it was back on the inflation watch the Bank of Canada paid close attention to this index, and no doubt they still do but given the economic circumstances any inflation risk, and hence any monetary policy tightening, remain a long way off,” it says.