WASHINGTON — The number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits stood at a two-month high in mid-October at the time when the Labor Department would have been conducting its survey of U.S. households for the monthly employment report that has been held up by the recently ended government shutdown.
Continued claims for jobless benefits — those receiving benefits beyond an initial week of relief — rose to 1.95 million in the week ended Oct. 18, updated figures posted to a Labor Department website showed on Tuesday. That was up 10,000 from the prior week and was the highest since early August. It was up notably from the 1.91 million level in the week ended Sept. 13, the last week of data to have been reported prior to the start of the shutdown on Oct. 1.
New claims for benefits in the Oct. 18 week totaled 232,000, up from 219,000 in the week ended Sept. 20, the final week reported before the shutdown. That level, though, was well within the range of new claims over the months leading up to the shutdown.
The Labor Department conducts its monthly surveys for the monthly employment report during the week containing the 12th day of the month.
