BELOW SUPERNAV drop zone ⇩

787,000 Americans filed for unemployment last week

In this photo illustration, a person files an application for unemployment benefits on April 16, 2020, in Arlington, Virginia. (Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images)

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

Mortgage Calculator

This calculator helps you estimate your monthly mortgage payment. It adds up the loan payment (principal + interest), property tax, and insurance. The loan payment is spread out over the years of your loan term.

This is the total amount you're borrowing from the bank.
This is the yearly interest rate on your loan.
This is how long you'll take to repay the loan.
This is the yearly tax you pay on your property.
This is the yearly cost to insure your home.

Monthly Payment Breakdown

Principal and Interest: $

Property Tax: $

Homeowners Insurance: $

Total Estimated Monthly Payment: $

CHICAGO (NewsNation Now) — The number of Americans filing for unemployment slightly dropped last week to 787,000, while the impact of the coronavirus pandemic is still felt across industries.

The latest figures released by the Labor Department Thursday show that the number of people filing for jobless benefits declined by 55,000 from the previous week.

The labor agency’s report also said that the number of people continuing to receive unemployment benefits fell to nearly 8.4 million, a decrease of over 1 million from the previous week.

Mark Hamrick, a senior economic analyst for Bankrate.com, expressed caution at the drop in claims.

“While we see welcome reported declines in the headline numbers of new claims for unemployment benefits as well as continuing claims reflecting activity administered by states, an additional 500,000 individuals are receiving assistance via the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program,” he said. “It is difficult to know exactly how many individuals are no longer qualifying for jobless aid, and how many are going back to work when looking at these numbers alone.”

Many jobless recipients are now receiving only regular state unemployment payments because a federal weekly supplement of $300 ended in nearly all states. And a $600-a-week federal benefit expired over the summer.

“The economy faces uncertainty on a variety of fronts in the coming weeks and months, including the outcome of the election and, of course, the source of the downturn in the first place, which is the pandemic,” Hamrick said. “Uncertainty is counterproductive when it comes to generating confidence on the part of employers and consumers. But these issues will eventually be resolved one way or the other.”

The weekly count of Americans applying for unemployment benefits has become less reliable as some states have increased their efforts to root out fraudulent claims and process earlier applications that have piled up.

California has resumed reporting its unemployment insurance claims after a two-week pause, which the Labor Department had noted would likely swing data reporting in the state and across the country.

The data reported Thursday accounts for California’s current week totals and revisions to the prior two weeks.

Your Money

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

Site Settings Survey

 

MAIN AREA MIDDLE drop zone ⇩

Trending on NewsNation

MAIN AREA BOTTOM drop zone ⇩

tt

KC Chiefs parade shooting: 1 dead, 21 shot including 9 kids | Morning in America

Witness of Chiefs parade shooting describes suspect | Banfield

Kansas City Chiefs parade shooting: Mom of 2 dead, over 20 shot | Banfield

WWE star Ashley Massaro 'threatened' by board to keep quiet about alleged rape: Friend | Banfield

Friend of WWE star: Ashley Massaro 'spent hours' sobbing after alleged rape | Banfield

Sunny

la

66°F Sunny Feels like 66°
Wind
4 mph SSW
Humidity
33%
Sunrise
Sunset

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 52F. Winds light and variable.
52°F Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 52F. Winds light and variable.
Wind
5 mph SW
Precip
15%
Sunset
Moon Phase
Waxing Gibbous