The number of Americans applying for unemployment checks dropped last week to the lowest level since March, suggesting that most U.S. workers continue to enjoy unusually high job security, according to the Associated Press.
Jobless claims dropped by 9,000 to 211,000 last week, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The four-week average of claims, which strips out week-to-week ups and downs, fell by 3,500 to 223,250. The overall numbers receiving unemployment benefits fell by 52,000 to 1.84 million, the lowest since September.
The weekly jobless claims numbers are a proxy for layoffs, and those have remained below pre-pandemic levels. The unemployment rate is at a modest 4.2%, though that is up from a half century low 3.4% reached in 2023.
