The weekly unemployment claims report from the Labor Department on Thursday, the most timely data on the economy's health, also showed the number of people on state unemployment rolls plunging to levels last seen in mid-March 2020 when the economy was reeling from mandatory shutdowns of nonessential businesses to slow the first wave of COVID-19 cases.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 35,000 to a seasonally adjusted 310,000 for the week ended Sept. 4, the lowest level since mid-March 2020. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 335,000 applications for the latest week. Claims have dropped from a record 6.149 million in early April 2020. They are closing in on the upper end of the 200,000-250,000 range viewed as consistent with healthy labor market conditions.
The continued downward trend in claims suggested the labor market was holding up, despite a resurgence in infections, driven by the Delta variant of the coronavirus. Rising cases contributed to holding back job growth in August, with nonfarm payrolls increasing only 235,000, the smallest gain since January. Payrolls surged 1.053 million in July.
The claims report also showed the number of people continuing to receive benefits after an initial week of aid fell 22,000 to 2.783 million in the week ended Aug. 28, the lowest level since mid-March 2020.