Unemployment Claims Fall to 7-Week Low

Unemployment claims fell for the first time in five weeks, the Labor Department reported yesterday, to their lowest level this year, although they remain elevated compared to pre-pandemic levels.

The report said for the week ending February 20, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims fell 730,000, a decrease of 111,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week’s level was revised down by 20,000 from 861,000 to 841,000. The four-week moving average fell to 807,750, a decrease of 20,500 from the previous week’s revised average.

The report said the advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate fell to 3.1 percent for the week ending February 13, a decrease of 0.1 percentage point from the previous week’s unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending February 13 fell to 4,419,000, a decrease of 101,000 from the previous week’s revised level, which revised up by 26,000 from 4,494,000 to 4,520,000. The four-week moving average fell to 4,547,000, a decrease of 91,500 from the previous week’s revised average

The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate fell slightly to 3.4 percent during the week ending February 13, a decrease of 0.1 percentage point from the prior week. The advance unadjusted level of insured unemployment in state programs totaled 4,828,027, a decrease of 143,320 (or -2.9 percent) from the preceding week. A year earlier the rate was 1.4 percent and the volume was 2,061,669.