Fact Check: Did jobless claims one week in April 2026 reach the lowest level since 1969?
Yes
The span April 19-25, 2026, saw the lowest weekly jobless claims since 1969, although this wasn’t true for the month as a whole.
The seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims (ICSA) total was 190,000 in the week ending April 25th, 2026, the lowest weekly value since 1969. But the other three weeks ending in April 2026 had an average of 213,667 claims, and the weekly average for March and April were virtually the same, differing by only 250 claims. This reflects the volatility in the weekly ICSA data, what is referred to as “statistical noise” in this data series.
The lowest weekly average for a month since 1969 was September 2022, at 197,500 claims. This is smaller than the 207,750 figure for April 2026. The value for April 2026 was, however, the lowest since December 2023.
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Sources:
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Initial Claims (ICSA)
EconoFact Fact Brief Initial Claims Employment
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