Chicago Fed Launches Interim Unemployment Report, Estimates September Jobless Rate at 4.3%

On Tuesday, the Chicago Federal Reserve said it has developed a new “real-time” unemployment report that combines government and private data to provide faster, twice-monthly updates on labor market conditions, Reuters reported (9-24-25).

The new report uses the government’s Current Population Survey along with information from ADP, Indeed, and Google. For September, the Fed estimated the unemployment rate likely held steady at 4.3%.

The bank noted that the hiring rate for unemployed workers increased slightly, but the gain was offset by higher layoffs and other job separations. The estimate arrives nearly two weeks ahead of the October 3 official employment report, which will cover payroll growth and the September unemployment rate.