Updated: 25-Sep-25 09:36 ET

Initial Claims for the Week Ended Sep 20

Updated: 25-Sep-25 09:36 ET

Highlights

• Weekly initial jobless claims for the week ending September 20 decreased by 14,000 to 218,000 (Briefing.com consensus: 238,000).
• Continuing jobless claims for the week ending September 13 decreased by 2,000 to 1.926 million.

Key Factors

• The four-week moving average for initial claims decreased by 2,750 to 237,500.
• The four-week moving average for continuing claims decreased by 4,500 to 1,930,000.
• The total number of continued weeks claimed for benefits in all programs for the week ending September 6 was 1,790,449, a decrease of 44,009 from the previous week and compared to 1,693,148 in the comparable week a year ago.

Big Picture

• The key takeaway from the report is the recognition that initial jobless claims-a leading indicator-are running at levels more consistent with a strong labor market than a weak one. If nothing else, there certainly wasn't a lot of firing activity in the week ending September 20.

Category	Sep 20	Sep 13	Sep 6	Aug 30	Aug 23
Initial Claims	218K	232K	264K	236K	229K
4-Wk Moving Avg	238K	240K	241K	231K	229K
Continued Benefits		1926K	1928K	1927K	1939K
4-Wk Moving Avg		1930K	1935K	1943K	1947K