In the week ending Oct. 19, the number of people filing for U.S. unemployment benefits decreased by 6,000 to 212,000. Meanwhile, the previous week's level was revised up by 4,000 to 218,000.
The report also showed that four-week moving average of initial claims, a method to iron out data volatility, decreased by 750 to 215,000. The previous week's average was revised up by 1,000 to 215,750.
As an important leading indicator to reflect unemployment status in the United States, a lower reading in jobless claims indicates lower overall layoffs. The reading of jobless claims remained below the 300,000 threshold, signaling a tight labor market in the country.
For the bigger picture of U.S. labor market, U.S. employers added fewer-than-expected 136,000 jobs in September, and the unemployment rate fell to 3.5 percent, a nearly five-decade low, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Oct. 4.
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