In the latest report by the US Department of Labor, it has been revealed that the number of first-time applicants for unemployment benefits in the country has dropped to the lowest level since mid-July. The number of ongoing claims for unemployment benefits has also decreased to the lowest level in over two years, indicating a continued stable condition in the US labor market.
During the week ending September 12th, the national number of initial claims for unemployment benefits declined by 10,000 people, adjusted seasonally to 196,000 individuals. This marks the lowest level since mid-July and one of the lowest levels since 1969. The data surpassed economists’ expectations, who had predicted last week’s claims to be around 208,000. The 4-week moving average for initial claims also dropped to 203,250 people, hitting a five-week low, helping to mitigate the volatility in weekly data.
The data for ongoing claims for unemployment benefits is reported with a one-week lag. For the week ending September 5th, the total number of people receiving unemployment benefits in the US had decreased to 1.73 million, reaching the lowest level since January 2024.
The number of first-time applications for unemployment benefits each week is often seen as a gauge of business layoff trends and serves as a real-time indicator of the health of the US job market. Despite the pressure brought on businesses and consumers due to rising gasoline prices since the start of the Iran conflict on February 28th, the Labor Department’s report on Thursday suggests that the US job market remains steady with layoffs staying at historically low levels.
Over the past few years, the weekly number of initial claims for unemployment benefits in the US has mostly remained within the range of 200,000 to 250,000, with the past year seeing historic lows of 200,000 to 230,000.
While layoffs have been limited, the US labor market continues to exhibit low recruitment and low dismissals, a trend that has been prevalent for the majority of the past few years.
So far this year, including employers from businesses, government agencies, and non-profit organizations, the US has been adding an average of 80,000 jobs per month, with a significant increase of 162,000 jobs in August. This marks an improvement from 2025 when high interest rates and volatile trade policies suppressed hiring, resulting in an average of only 9,700 new jobs per month.