Initial jobless claims fall to 326K first dip in four weeks

The number of Americans filing initial unemployment claims fell for the first time in four weeks as more workers rejoined the labor force following the expiration of supplemental jobless benefits. 

First-time jobless filings fell by 38,000 to 326,000 in the week ended October 2, according to the Labor Department. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv were expecting a drop to 348,000. 

"After three straight weekly increases, new jobless claims have finally moved to the downside," said Mark Hamrick, senior economic analyst at Bankrate. "The decline of 38,000 to 326,000 in seasonally adjusted new claims leaves them slightly above the pandemic era low one month ago."  

Continuing claims for the week ended September 25 fell to a pandemic-era low of 2.714 million, down from the prior week’s upwardly revised 2.811 million. Analysts had anticipated a reading of 2.78 million. 

The further decline in continuing claims comes less than three weeks after the expiration of the $300 per week in supplemental unemployment benefits. 

About 4.17 million Americans received some form of unemployment assistance, a decrease of more than 854,000 from the prior week. More than 24.6 million Americans filed for benefits during the comparable week in 2020. 

The better-than-expected report sets the stage for the September nonfarm payroll report which is due out on Friday. Economists expect the release to show 500,000 Americans found jobs last month as the unemployment rate slipped to 5.1%. That would be an improvement from the 235,000 jobs that were added in August.