Continuing Claims

For the week ending 11/4/23, initial unemployment claims were a very low 217,000, barely above decade lows. However, continuing unemployment claims came in at 1,834,000 and are up about 250,000 from the decade lows set last year. This suggests that while layoffs are very low, those unemployed and looking for a job are finding it increasingly difficult to find employment. This is consistent with a cooling labor market.