The number of Americans applying for jobless benefits remains historically low despite a slight rise last week.
According to statistics released Thursday by the Labor Department, unemployment claim applications rose to 210,000 for the week ending Oct. 21. That’s a 10,000-claim jump from the previous week’s applications, which were the fewest in eight months.
The four-week moving average of claims also rose, up by 1,250 to 207,500.
Overall, 1.79 million people were collecting unemployment benefits the week that ended Oct. 14, about 63,000 more than the previous week.
The numbers remain historiallyl low despite the Federal Reserve’s efforts to cool the job market in an effort to fight a stubborn inflation rate. The Federal Reserve has raised its benchmark interest rate 11 times since March 2022.
In September, employers added 336,000 jobs, raising the average gain for each of the past three months to 266,000. Though the unemployment rate rose from 3.5% to 3.8% last month, that’s mostly due to the fact that about 736,000 people resumed their search for employment, according to a report from The Associated Press. Only people who are actively looking for a job are counted as unemployed.
