Continuing jobless claims in the US, a key indicator of the number of people receiving unemployment benefits, rose to 1.957 million for the week ended October 18, 2025, the highest level since early August. This compares with 1.947 million in the previous week, according to data available on the Department of Labor’s online database as of November 18th. The Department of Labor has not released its regular weekly jobless claims report during the federal government shutdown.