The number of initial unemployment claims in the United States has decreased, but labor demand remains weak, and the unemployment rate has risen to a four-year high.

September 25th. In the United States, initial jobless claims witnessed a decline in the previous week. However, the employment market lost its brilliance due to a sluggish hiring tempo. The U.S. Department of Labor announced on Thursday that for the week ending September 20th, seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims decreased by 14,000 and reached 218,000. Owing to the uncertainty brought about by protectionist trade policies, despite hoarding workers, businesses still hesitated to expand their workforce. Protectionist trade policies have elevated the U.S.'s average tariff to the highest level in a century. Weak labor demand has weakened the resilience of the labor market, which led the Fed to cut interest rates once again last week. The Trump administration's crackdown on immigration has also led to a reduction in labor supply and restrained job growth. Initial jobless claims data indicates that for the week ending September 13th, after seasonal adjustment, continuing jobless claims decreased by 2,000 and reached 1.926 million. The average duration of unemployment in August increased from 24.1 weeks to 24.5 weeks, which is the longest since April 2022, pushing the unemployment rate to its highest point in nearly four years at 4.3%. (FXStreet)