Weekly jobless number falls to 837,000, slightly lower than expected figure

The figure has remained below 1 million for weeks, as the U.S. economy has reclaimed about half the jobs originally lost during the pandemic

By Sophie Mann

Published: October 1, 2020 8:18am

Updated: October 1, 2020 10:25am

The number of U.S. workers who applied for first-time unemployment benefits last week was 837,000, according to newly released data Thursday from the Labor Department.

The figure was slightly lower than the expected 850,000 number. It has remained below 1 million for the past five weeks.

The U.S. economy has reclaimed about half the jobs originally lost during the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in March and April, when weekly unemployment figures reached a record roughly 7 million.

The department on Friday will release the much anticipated non-farm payrolls report, which is expected to show a gain of 800,000 for September. The unemployment rate, now at 8.2%, is expected to drop slightly.