U.S. jobless claims fell to a 3-month low, below the 200,000 economists expected

The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell by 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 194,000 in the week ending Oct. 17, the lowest level since July. The figure came out Thursday.

Economists in a survey were looking for 200,000 claims, according to Reuters. The prior week's level was revised up by 1,000 to 200,000. The four-week moving average fell by 1,000 to 197,750.

Before seasonal adjustment, states recorded 172,390 initial claims, a decrease of 19,321, or 10.1%, from the previous week. Seasonal factors had called for a decrease of 14,179, or 7.4%. The comparable week in 2025 had 205,653 initial claims.

Continuing claims, which count people still collecting benefits after their first week, rose by 25,000 to 1.728 million in the week ending Oct. 10. The seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.1%, unchanged from the previous week.

Among states, the largest increases in unadjusted initial claims for the week ending Oct. 10 were in Ohio, up 3,918, and Tennessee, up 3,477. Ohio cited layoffs in manufacturing. Tennessee cited layoffs in educational services and manufacturing.

Claims reached 189,000 in mid-July, a low not matched in more than five decades, since 1969. Claims have not topped 230,000 in any week this year, according to The Associated Press.

Layoffs are still rare and employers are adding few workers, a combination economists describe as a "low-hire, low-fire" job market, according to The Associated Press.