Fewer people filed for unemployment benefits at the end of September and beginning of October, the Department of Labor reported Thursday morning.
Only 263,000 workers filed first-time claims for unemployment insurance in the week, down 13,000 from the week before. Economists had expected around 271,000 claims, which are adjusted for seasonal variations.
Lower jobless claims are thought to indicate that fewer people are being laid off and that the jobs outlook is getting better.
Amid mixed signals about the health of the U.S. economy, the weekly jobless claims numbers have been among the brightest economic statistics throughout the summer and early fall. First-time claims have not risen above 300,000 since February.
The four-week moving average of claims, meanwhile, dropped by 3,000 to 267,500. In recent months, the four-week average has bounced around the lowest levels it has been since the dotcom bubble.
The encouraging signals from the weekly unemployment claims numbers will reassure investors and officials at the Federal Reserve after last week’s disappointing monthly jobs report. Despite jobless claims grinding lower, the jobs report showed the economy adding just 142,000 new jobs, well short of expectations, and the unemployment rate standing still at 5.1 percent.
While the past few jobs reports have elevated concerns about the jobs recovery petering out, the unemployment claims data have been more positive.
The total number of people receiving unemployment benefits fell to 1.9 million through Sept. 19, down from 2.1 million a year before.
There were no special factors playing into the state claims data, the Labor Department said.
Kansas saw the biggest drop in claims, a decline of 2,588. Applications for benefits rose in Michigan, by 2,837, and increased by smaller amounts in Illinois, New York, New Jersey, and Puerto Rico.
