New jobless claims fall to 348,000, lowest of the pandemic recovery
by Zachary Halaschak, Economics Reporter |
| August 19, 2021 08:32 AM
The number of new applications for unemployment benefits fell 29,000 last week to 348,000, the Labor Department reported on Thursday.
Thursday’s jobless claims number was less than forecasters’ expectations of 363,000 and represents the fourth-straight weekly decline.
"Some much-needed good news is found in jobless claims with fresh pandemic lows notched both for new and continuing claims," said Mark Hamrick, Bankrate's senior economic analyst. "The situation with claims occurs despite the recent headwinds including the resurgence of COVID cases, the flare-up of inflation, and receding fiscal stimulus."
The new numbers follow the July jobs report, which beat expectations with 943,000 new jobs and a decline in the unemployment rate from 5.9% to 5.4%.
Jobless claims have been closely tracked each week as the United States attempts to pull away from the coronavirus pandemic, which resulted in a two-month recession and a protracted recovery punctuated by supply chain issues, labor shortages, and higher-than-anticipated inflation.
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