US Weekly Initial Jobless Claims Decline in the Week Ending January 24

On Thursday, the US Department of Labor reported that the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims was 209,000 for the week ending Saturday, January 24, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 210,000 (originally 200,000). The four-week moving average was 206,250—an increase of 2,250 from the prior week’s revised average of 204,000 (originally 201,500).

The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending January 17 was 1,827,000, a decrease of 38,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 1,865,000 (originally 1,849,000). This is the lowest level for insured unemployment since September 21, 2024, when it was 1,825,000. The four-week moving average was 1,867,500—a decrease of 7,250 from the prior week’s revised average of 1,874,750 (originally 1,870,750).

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.2% for the week ending January 17, unchanged from the previous week’s unrevised rate.