BACK TO WORK: US Jobless Claims Fall to 198,000, Below All Estimates

The Trump boom is real.

Fewer Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, even as worries grow that the job market may be cooling. New filings for jobless aid for the week ending Jan. 10 fell by 9,000 to 198,000, down from 207,000 the week before, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

That was also far below the 215,000 analysts expected, according to FactSet.

Applications for unemployment benefits are seen as a real-time proxy for layoffs — and right now, layoffs are still staying low. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out weekly swings, fell by 6,500 to 205,000.

And the number of Americans continuing to collect benefits for the prior week ending Jan. 3 declined by 19,000 to 1.884 million.

More over at ABC News:

US Jobless Claims Fall to 198,000, Below All Estimates

"Applications for US unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week to the lowest level since November… Claims have only fallen below 200,000 a few times in recent years."https://t.co/LsH7u08fuk

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) January 15, 2026

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