US Initial Jobless Claims Fall to Eight-Month Low to End 2024

Initial applications for US unemployment capped 2024 at an eight-month low, reflecting the relatively muted levels of job cuts in a labor market that has remained surprisingly resilient.

New claims fell by 9,000 to 211,000 in the week ended Dec. 28, lower than all but one estimate in a Bloomberg survey. Meanwhile continuing applications, a proxy for the number of people receiving benefits, also fell, to a three-month low of 1.84 million in the week ended Dec. 21, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.

The current levels for initial claims are subdued — in line with their ...