US weekly jobless claims total 840,000

Washington, Oct 9 The weekly unemployment claims in the US totalled 840,000 last week, the lowest level since the coronavirus-induced shutdown in March, according to the Labour Department.

The new figure, released by the Department on Thursday, was also lower from the upwardly revised 849,000 from a week earlier, reports CNBC News.

Since the US economy was shutdown after the World Health Organization declared the outbreak as a pandemic, unemployment claims have remained above the 800,000 mark every week.

However, continuing claims again fell sharply, dropping by just over 1 million to 10.98 million, according to the Labour Department.

Continuing claims trail the headline weekly claims number by a week.

The insured unemployment rate also slid from 8.2 per cent to 7.5 per cent, its lowest since March 28.

Despite the persistently high level of jobless claims, a White House official said the economy continues on a clear recovery path.

"The economy is entering into a boom and growth looks great," Joseph LaVorgna, an advisor to President Donald Trump and chief economist on the National Economic Council, told CNBC News on Thursday.