Jobless Claims ‘Back on Track,’ Remain Elevated

After several weeks of increased numbers, initial claims for unemployment insurance fell significantly last week, suggesting a bit of stabilization for an extremely volatile economic metric.

Initial Claims Level Again at 1.5 Million

American workers filed 1.5 million new applications for jobless benefits last weeks, the Labor Department reported Friday—the third consecutive week at that level, but still at historically high levels in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.