Weekly jobless claims fall to two-month low

Weekly unemployment insurance claims fell to a 2-month low ahead of Friday's hotly-anticipated jobs report, according to data released Thursday.

Claims numbered 227,000 for the week ending Aug. 31, the Labor Department reported Thursday, generally in line with expectations between 225,000 and 230,000. That’s the lowest level since early July.

The largest jumps in initial claims for the week ending August 24 were in New York, Michigan, Georgia, North Dakota, and Massachusetts, according to the Labor Department.

Increasing attention is being paid to employment levels in the economy, following a weak July jobs report that saw the unemployment rate rise to 4.3 from 4.1 percent. 

Unemployment has been slowly rising from April of last year amid interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. The jobs report for August is due out Friday.

A different measure of employment released Thursday showed more stress in labor conditions, as the ADP private employment survey came in well below expectations.

The economy added 99,000 jobs in August compared to estimates it would add about 145,000 jobs, according to the ADP survey. The ADP survey has had some issues lining up with official data during the post-pandemic period, which has repeatedly surprised economists.

The Fed is widely expected to cut interest rates at its next meeting later this month in order to encourage investment, which could eventually lead to more hiring in the economy. But for now, markets are bracing to see the effect of the past year’s elevated interest rate levels on employment and broader economic conditions.