U.S. Jobless Claims Held Near Steady at 837K In Sept. 26 Week -- Update
October 01 2020 - 9:13AM
Dow Jones News
By Eric Morath
New applications for unemployment benefits fell slightly last
week but remained an elevated plateau for the fifth straight week,
reflecting a labor-market recovery that is losing some
momentum.
Weekly initial claims for jobless benefits fell by 36,000 to a
seasonally adjusted 837,000 in the week ended Sept. 26, the Labor
Department said Thursday. The number of people collecting
unemployment benefits through regular state programs, which cover
most workers, decreased by 980,000 to about 11.8 million for the
week ended Sept. 19.
The totals for unemployment applications and payments remain
well above pre-pandemic peaks but are down significantly from this
spring, when the coronavirus pandemic and related shutdowns caused
both measures to rise to the highest levels on record back to the
1960s.
The latest data comes with a caveat. The Labor Department said
California paused processing initial claims for two weeks in an
effort to clear a backlog. This week's national report reflects the
level during the last week prior to the pause. Data will be revised
at a later date, the government said.
Write to Eric Morath at eric.morath@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 01, 2020 08:58 ET (12:58 GMT)
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