The number of Americans collecting unemployment benefits has slipped to its lowest point in 10 months, the Department of Labor reported on Dec. 11.
For the week ending Nov. 29, continuing jobless claims declined by 99,000 to 1.838 million—the lowest reading since early April. This is down from the previous week’s downwardly revised 1.937 million.
Market watchers had penciled in a reading of 1.95 million.
Economists have closely examined this measure to assess the challenges that out-of-work individuals face in finding new employment.
The long-term unemployment rate—individuals jobless for 27 weeks or longer as a percent of total unemployed—has remained elevated at 23.6 percent.
Demand for labor has softened recently, with job openings stalling at 7.67 million in October as employers take a wait-and-see approach before restarting their hiring efforts….