US: Weekly Initial Jobless Claims Unchanged at 884,000

The number of Americans filing for new unemployment benefits stabilized at high levels last week, reinforcing views that the job market is stabilizing on a more gradual path to recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The US Labor Department said that the total of new applications for unemployment benefits, adjusted in light of seasonal factors, amounted to 884,000 for the week ending September 5, unchanged from the previous week. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 846,000 orders in the latest week.

Although orders fell from a record 6.867 million at the end of March, layoffs continue in various industries as companies exhausted government loans for wage aid and the coronavirus continues. Supplementary aid to the weekly unemployment benefit expired in July. The aid is credited with a strong recovery in economic activities, starting with record retail sales growth in May.