US weekly jobless claims fall to 837,000 as economic recovery grinds onward
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- New US jobless claims for the week that ended on Saturday totaled 837,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. The reading landed below the consensus economist estimate of 850,000 and marked a decrease from the prior week.
- Continuing claims, which track Americans receiving unemployment benefits, fell to 11.8 million for the week that ended on September 19. That was also lower than economist expectations.
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The number of Americans filing for unemployment insurance declined last week, signaling an encouraging pace of recovery for the nation's labor market.
New US weekly jobless claims totaled an unadjusted 837,000 for the week that ended Saturday, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That reading came in below the median economist estimate of 850,000 compiled by Bloomberg and reflects a decrease from the previous week.
Continuing claims, which track the aggregate total of Americans currently receiving unemployment benefits, slid to 11.8 million for the week ended September 19. The reading also came in below the median economist estimate of 12.2 million.
The nearly 63 million unemployment-insurance filings made throughout the coronavirus pandemic trounce the 37 million filings seen during the 18-month Great Recession. Thursday's reading showed jobless claims holding at historically high levels, and easily surpassed the 665,000 filings made during the Great Recession's worst week.
The Labor Department's latest filing data arrives one day ahead of the government's monthly nonfarm payrolls report. The September update is expected to show the unemployment rate dropping to 8.2% from 8.4%, a markedly smaller drop compared to those seen in recent months. Economists also expect 850,000 payroll additions for the month.
Some indicators suggest the Friday reading will surprise to the upside. In its own monthly payrolls report, ADP said private US firms added 749,000 jobs last month. That reading beat economists' median expectation of 649,000 payrolls and exceeded the 481,000 additions seen in August.
Still, nearly stagnant jobless claims data suggests the labor market's recovery has weakened. Some experts hope for a new round of fiscal stimulus to jolt the nation's economic rebound back to life. House Democrats are poised to vote on a new $2.2 trillion proposal this week that includes a $600-per-week expansion to unemployment benefits and another set of economic relief payments.
The legislators have indicated they'll move forward with a vote even if a compromise with the White House isn't reached, but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin remain locked in last-minute talks to iron out differences in the measure.
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