Jobless Claims Fall, Productivity at 6-Year High

Washington, DC, Nov. 5, 2009--Initial jobless claims fell by 20,000 to a seasonally adjusted 512,000 in the week ending Oct. 31, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

It was the first decline in two weeks. It's the fewest initial claims since early January. Initial jobless claims have been above 500,000 for 51 straight weeks.

The figures come one day before the Labor Department reports on the October employment rate. Economists expect nonfarm payrolls to fall by 150,000 in October, and for the unemployment rate to rise to 9.9%.

Economists expected initial claims to fall to about 520,000. The level of initial claims in the week ending Oct. 24 was revised up by 2,000 to 532,000.

The four-week average of initial claims fell by 3,000 to 523,750, also the lowest since January.
 
In a separate report, the Labor Department said productivity in the U.S. nonfarm sector rose at a 9.5% annual rate in the third quarter, the biggest gain in six years.

Unit labor costs plunged 5.2%. In the past year, productivity is up 4.3%, while unit labor costs are down a record 3.6%.