- Last week, the count of Americans filing for unemployment benefits decreased by 20,000 to reach an eight-month low of 201,000. This decline reflects businesses' reluctance to lay off workers in a period marked by severe labor shortages. The US government revised down the prior week's new jobless claims to 221,000.
- Despite this decline, job losses remain at remarkably low levels. Typically, unemployment claims increase as the economy weakens and a recession looms, economists had anticipated that new claims for the week ending September 16 would total 225,000. The Labor Day holiday may have contributed to the drop in claims, as some individuals tend to postpone filing their applications around holidays.
Why it matters
In the report from the federal government, new jobless claims increased in 31 out of the 53 states, with most of the increases being modest, while claims decreased in 22 states. Meanwhile, the number of individuals receiving unemployment benefits in the United States dropped by 21,000 to 1.66 million, also marking the lowest level since January.
