Continued Claims in 2015
Continued Claims opened 2015 at 2,381,000 and closed at 2,207,000, a -7.31% move for the year. The high of 2,400,000 was reached on January 10, and the low of 2,176,000 on December 19.
Monthly Breakdown
| Month | Open | Close | High | Low | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2,381,000 | 2,297,000 | 2,400,000 | 2,297,000 | -3.53% |
| Feb | 2,344,000 | 2,357,000 | 2,357,000 | 2,319,000 | +0.55% |
| Mar | 2,361,000 | 2,278,000 | 2,361,000 | 2,278,000 | -3.52% |
| Apr | 2,273,000 | 2,254,000 | 2,320,000 | 2,254,000 | -0.84% |
| May | 2,261,000 | 2,294,000 | 2,294,000 | 2,236,000 | +1.46% |
| Jun | 2,250,000 | 2,312,000 | 2,312,000 | 2,250,000 | +2.76% |
| Jul | 2,233,000 | 2,253,000 | 2,267,000 | 2,226,000 | +0.90% |
| Aug | 2,257,000 | 2,258,000 | 2,258,000 | 2,247,000 | +0.04% |
| Sep | 2,243,000 | 2,240,000 | 2,255,000 | 2,234,000 | -0.13% |
| Oct | 2,207,000 | 2,205,000 | 2,218,000 | 2,194,000 | -0.09% |
| Nov | 2,209,000 | 2,259,000 | 2,259,000 | 2,181,000 | +2.26% |
| Dec | 2,242,000 | 2,207,000 | 2,242,000 | 2,176,000 | -1.56% |
Events During 2015
The PBoC devalued the yuan by 1.9% in a single day on August 11, 2015, the first meaningful devaluation since 1994. Global risk assets convulsed.
Brent crude fell from $115 in June 2014 to $27 in January 2016, a 77% collapse. Shale oversupply and OPEC's refusal to cut production broke the commodity supercycle that had dominated markets since 2003.
The Swiss National Bank abandoned its 1.20 EUR/CHF floor on January 15, 2015. The franc immediately surged 30%, blowing up retail FX brokers and exposing the fragility of exchange rate commitments.
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