US Jobless Claims Dip to Lowest Level in 53 Years

In a sign that the economy is gaining momentum, applications for unemployment insurance fell last week to the lowest since 1969, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) reported Thursday (March 24).

For the week that ended March 19, the DOL said the advance number for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims was 187,000. That’s a decrease of 28,000 from the previous week's revised level. The latest data represents lowest level for initial claims since September 6, 1969, when it was 182,000.

The previous week’s level was revised up by 1,000 from 214,000 to 215,000. The four-week average was 211,750, down 11,500 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was revised up by 250 from 223,000 to 223,250.

DOL said the largest increases in initial claims for the week ending March 12 were in Michigan at 2,068. Ohio saw a 1,547 increase, California was up by 1,274, Missouri rose by 850, and Illinois grew by 665.

The largest decreases were in New York, where claims fell by 16,098. Massachusetts saw a 1,116 decline, New Jersey was off by 1,046, Washington slipped 992, and District of Columbia claims fell by 945.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed, non-farm payrolls rose by 678,000 positions in February. The unemployment rate was 3.8%.

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While the job growth data revealed the biggest monthly gain in several months, and the unemployment shrank, there are signs in the mix from the small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that comprise the backbone of the U.S. economy.

We appear to be headed toward the pre-pandemic high water mark, where the U.S. economy, as measured through February’s gains, is 1 million jobs shy of where we were before COVID-19 devastated businesses and payrolls.