Source: Wall Street See
Author: Zhang Yaqi.

Last week, the number of people applying for unemployment benefits in the usa dropped to the lowest level since May, and the southeastern states are recovering from the impact of two hurricanes.

On Thursday, October 31, the data released by the US Department of Labor shows that the number of initial claims for unemployment benefits in the usa was 0.216 million for the week ending October 26, with an expected value of 0.23 million and the previous value was 0.227 million.

This is the third consecutive weekly decline in the number of initial claims for unemployment benefits. The number of claims is currently at the lowest level since May.

The number of continued claims for unemployment benefits dropped to 1.86 million in the previous week.

The newly filed 4-week moving average dropped to 0.2365 million people.

Due to hurricanes Helen and Milton attacking parts of the southern usa, leading to business shutdowns, this month's unemployment data is even more unstable than usual. In addition, Boeing's weeks-long strike may lead to layoffs among suppliers, further obscuring potential trends in the labor market.

Economists estimate that Helen and Milton's drag on employment numbers could be as high as 70,000 people.

Without seasonal adjustment, the number of initial claims for unemployment benefits decreased last week. North Carolina and Florida, hit hard by storms, saw the biggest declines.

Over the past year, the number of initial claims for unemployment benefits has been on the rise, but still hovering near the strong levels of the two years before the pandemic.

A report by global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas on Thursday stated that planned job cuts by U.S. employers in October dropped by 23.7% to 55,597 people. Boeing plans to cut 17,000 jobs. So far, the announced job cuts in 2024 are 3.7% higher than the same period last year.

Meanwhile, Challenger stated in a report that recruitment plans so far this year are about 0.7503 million people, the lowest level for the same period since 2016.

The Department of Labor plans to release non-farm payroll data for October on Friday. Economists expect that Federal Reserve officials may overlook the jobs report at their meeting next week and cut interest rates by 25 basis points.

Editor/Jeffy