The U.S. Labor Department said Thursday that initial claims for unemployment benefits fell 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 219,000 for the week ended Sept. 14.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 230,000 claims.
The labor market has slowed sharply, with hiring activity and job openings falling sharply, raising concerns of a downturn that could undermine the economic expansion. However, layoffs remain low.
And reduce US Federal ReserveOn Wednesday, interest rates were cut by 50 basis points in the first cut since 2020.
The bank president said Jerome Powell “The labor market deserves close monitoring,” he told reporters, but added that the central bank was not waiting for layoffs to increase before cutting rates.
Government data last week showed that nonfarm payrolls increased by 142,000 in August, below the average monthly increase of 202,000 over the past 12 months.
The claims report showed the number of people receiving benefits after the first week of aid, a measure of employment, fell 14,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1.829 million during the week ended Sept. 7.
