Initial Jobless Claims Remain Near 57-Year Lows; Continuing Claims a 3-Year Low
Initial unemployment claims held below 200,000 for a third straight week (only ninth week since 1969), while continuing claims dropped to their lowest since March 2023.
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- Initial jobless claims for the week ending September 26: 197,000 (estimate 200,000; previous 197,000; revised previous 198,000)
- Continuing claims for the week ending September 19: 1,701,000 (estimate 1,725,000; previous 1,719,000; revised previous 1,712,000).
After bottoming at 189,000 in mid-July — the lowest reading since 1969 — initial jobless claims have barely budged, this week edging down 1,000 to 197,000 in the week through September 26 (from a revised 198,000 the prior week). That keeps them below 200,000 for a third straight week and only the ninth week since 1969 (all post-pandemic), leaving claims near cycle lows at the bottom of the relatively narrow range that has held since November 2021.
The four-week average fell 2,500 to 200,000 (roughly 34,000 lower year-over-year), a seven-week low.
Continuing claims (seasonally adjusted) in the week through September 19 (one week lagged) fell 11,000 to 1,701,000, the lowest since March 2023 (and following a 7,000 downward revision to the prior week). That dropped them to the very bottom of the roughly 1.70 million to 2.0 million range that has held since mid-2023 — historically low, though not quite as low as initial claims.
The four-week average of continuing claims fell 18,500 to 1,723,750, the lowest since May 2023, and remains lower year-over-year for a 34th straight week (down 198,500) — the largest such gap since December 2022 (second chart).
From BBG: Before adjusting for seasonal factors, initial claims dropped in most states, led by Hawaii, Georgia and Texas.
The 20-year pre-pandemic average for initial claims is 345,000 and continuing claims roughly 2.9 million.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor
