The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell to a 57-year low last week, in a fresh sign that employers are holding on to workers even as hiring stays cautious.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell by 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 189,000 for the week ended 31 October, the US Labor Department said on Thursday 5 November. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 196,000. The figure matched the 189,000 recorded in mid-July, the lowest reading since 1969, and claims have now stayed mostly below 200,000 since mid-September.

Claims match the mid-July low

The previous week's count was revised up by 1,000 to 195,000. The four-week moving average, which smooths out week-to-week swings, dipped to 194,750, according to the Associated Press.

Continuing claims — people still receiving benefits after their first week — rose by 23,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1.718 million in the week ended 24 October, the latest week for that series. The insured unemployment rate held at 1.1%. The rise is small in context: continuing claims remain low by historical standards, and economists read the combination as a labour market where layoffs are scarce but hiring is slow — "low hire, low fire".

Payrolls next

The figures arrive a day before the closely watched October employment report, due on Friday 6 November at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. Unemployment is expected to hold at 4.2%, according to the Associated Press. Reuters notes the claims report itself falls outside the survey period for the payrolls report, so it has no direct bearing on Friday's numbers — but it sets the tone: a labour market that is resilient on layoffs, with the hiring side still the open question.

Sources: Reuters via KWSN, US weekly jobless claims at 57-year lows amid low layoffs, 5 November 2026; Associated Press via IEN, Unemployment claims drop to 189,000, the fewest since mid-July, 5 November 2026; Morningstar / Dow Jones Newswires, US jobless claims slide lower again, 5 November 2026.