Oct. 19 (UPI) — Weekly first-time unemployment claims fell to their lowest level since January, according to data released by the Labor Department on Thursday.
First-time filings for the week ending Oct. 14 fell to a seasonally adjusted 198,000, dipping under 200,000 for the first time since Jan. 28 when 199,000 applied for unemployment insurance.
The total was just 4,000 off 2023’s lowest weekly total of 194,000 for the week ending Jan. 21 and 13,000 fewer than filed the week before
Initial unemployment filings, one of the indicators that give a window into employment stability around the country, had been on an uneven decline since reaching a 2023 weekly high of 264,000 for the week ending June 10.
The four-week moving average for first-time unemployment filings was 205,750, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised total, the Labor Department said.
The overall number of people filing for unemployment benefits for the week ending Oct. 7 increased by 29,000 to 1,734,000, the fourth straight week that the total has increased and the second week it increased by more than 20,000.
The four-week moving average for overall filings reached 1,694,000, an increase of 19,000 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was revised up slightly by 750 to 1,675,000.
