Labor Dept: Jobless Claims Lowest Since March 2020

Yahoo News reports:

Initial unemployment claims fell further last week to the lowest level since March 2020, bringing the level of weekly new filings closer to pre-virus levels.

New weekly jobless claims posted a fourth straight weekly decline, coming in yet again below the psychologically important 400,000 level. But even with the drop, new weekly claims are still elevated compared to the period before the pandemic, with claims averaging just over 200,000 per week throughout 2019.

The total number of claimants across all programs, however, has remained elevated, albeit while coming down sharply from peak levels during the outbreak. For the week ended July 31, about 11.7 million Americans were claiming benefits across both state and federal unemployment programs.

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Jobless claims fell to a pandemic low of 348,000 last week, suggesting the labor market continues to heal even as the Delta variant causes uncertainty https://t.co/yswUg4UqNL

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