Morgan Stanley Research previews the US initial jobless claims print on Thursday.

"Initial claims rose 16k to 219k last week. We think this is a temporary swing around the Easter holiday rather than a sign of underlying weakening, and we forecast a decline to 215k in the coming week," MS notes.

"If we're wrong, and new claims increase, the two weeks of higher prints could begin to suggest that oil prices and uncertainty were spilling into faster layoffs. We expect continuing claims revert to recent levels, rising to 1.83 million," MS adds.