The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell to a 57-year low last week, the Labor Department said Thursday, in the latest sign that employers are holding on to workers despite months of uncertainty about the economy.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 189,000 for the week ended October 31. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 196,000 claims. The reading matched the 189,000 level touched in mid-July — the lowest since 1969 — and claims have stayed mostly below 200,000 since mid-September.
The report also showed 1.06 open jobs for every unemployed person in September, up from 1.02 in August, a sign the labor market may be starting to tighten. The number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid — a proxy for hiring — rose 23,000 to a still-low 1.718 million during the week ended October 24.
The figures land a day before the government's closely watched employment report for October. The unemployment rate is forecast to hold at 4.2 percent. The claims report itself has no bearing on the October jobs report, which falls outside the survey period.
The latest data continues to give the Federal Reserve room to raise interest rates in December, with the bigger test coming Friday in the October jobs report.
