In the week ending August 8, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 963,000, a decrease of 228,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 5,000 from 1,186,000 to 1,191,000. The 4-week moving average was 1,252,750, a decrease of 86,250 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 1,250 from 1,337,750 to 1,339,000. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 10.6 percent for the week ending August 1, a decrease of 0.4 percentage point from the previous week's unrevised rate. The advance ... (full story)

First-time claims for unemployment insurance last fell below 1 million for the first time since March 21 in a sign that the labor market is continuin its recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. The total claims of 963,000 was well below the estimate of 1.1 million from economists surveyed by Dow Jones. Jobless claims had totaled above 1 million for 20 consecutive weeks as the U.S. economy went into lockdown to contain Covid-19. The last time the total was below that number was March 14, with 282,000, just as the pandemic declaration first hit. While the sub-1 million reading market s a milestone, there’s still plenty ... (full story)