Initial Claims Dip Slightly

Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell slightly last week after steadily increasing for much of the summer, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

For the week ending August 13, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims fell to 250,000, a decrease of 2,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The four-week moving average fell to 246,750, a decrease of 2,750 from the previous week’s revised average.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate held steady at 1.0 percent for the week ending August 6. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending August 6 rose to 1,437,000, an increase of 7,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The four-week moving average rose to 1,413,000, an increase of 13,250 from the previous week’s revised average.

The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 191,834 in the week ending August 13, a decrease of 4,536 (-2.3 percent) from the previous week. The seasonal factors had expected a decrease of 3,029 (-1.5 percent) from the previous week. Labor reported 309,465 initial claims in the comparable week in 2021.

The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate held at 1.0 percent during the week ending August 6. The advance unadjusted level of insured unemployment in state programs totaled 1,426,566, a decrease of 30,669 (-2.1 percent) from the preceding week. The seasonal factors had expected a decrease of 37,182 (-2.6 percent) from the previous week. A year earlier the rate was 2.0 percent; volume was 2,808,137.

The total number of continued weeks claimed for benefits in all programs for the week ending July 30 rose to 1,481,478, an increase of 2,696 from the previous week. Labor reported 11,825,252 weekly claims filed for benefits in all programs in the comparable week in 2021.