881,000 people - less than expected - filed new unemployment benefit claims in the last week of August.
But the labor market is still struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic and less government support.
Caroline Malone reports.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week.
But levels remain extraordinarily high amid signs that the labor market recovery was losing steam, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues and government support lapses.
881,000 initial claims were filed during the week up to August 29 – down from over one million the week before.
The labor market recovery from the depths of the pandemic in mid-March through April appears to be faltering.
Though new COVID-19 infections have subsided after a broad resurgence through the summer, many hot spots remain, especially at college campuses.
Businesses have used up government loans, and a weekly unemployment supplement ended in July.
The Federal Reserve in a report Wednesday found that while there was an increase in employment in some areas at the end of August, some districts reported slowing job growth and an increase in furloughed workers being laid off permanently.
The monthly jobs report is due out Friday- a Reuters survey of economists shows they expect non-farm payrolls to have risen by 1.4 million jobs in August.
The number of Americans filing new unemployment claims was flat at 212,000 last week, pointing to job market strength..
