US applications for jobless benefits fall as layoffs remain at historically healthy levels
Fewer Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week as layoffs remained at historically healthy levels despite elevated interest rates.
The four-week average of weekly claims, which quiets some of the week-to-week fluctuations, fell by 2,250 to 236,500.
Weekly applications for jobless benefits are considered a proxy for
In response to weakening employment data and receding consumer prices, the
It was the Fed's first rate cut in four years after a series of increases starting in 2022 that pushed the federal funds rate to a two-decade high of 5.3%.
Inflation has retreated steadily, approaching the Fed's 2% target and leading Chair
Also Thursday, the government reported that an inflation gauge closely watched by the Fed fell to its lowest level in three-and-a-half years.
During the first four months of 2024, applications for jobless benefits averaged just 213,000 a week before rising in May. They hit 250,000 in late July, supporting the notion that high interest rates were finally cooling a red-hot
In August, the
Despite some signs of labor market slowing, America's employers added a surprisingly strong 254,000 jobs in September, easing some concerns about a weakening job market and suggesting that the pace of hiring is still solid enough to support a growing economy.
Continuing claims, the total number of Americans collecting jobless benefits, declined by 26,000 to 1.86 million for the week of
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