In the week ended Oct. 20, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims was 331,000, a decrease of 8,000, or 2.4%, from the previous week's revised figure of 339,000. The four-week moving average was 324,750, an increase of 7,750 from the previous week's revised average of 317,000.

In the most recent state numbers, for the week ending Oct. 13, Michigan posted the largest increase in initial claims, up 5,720, followed by Ohio at 2,523. Ohio cited layoffs in the auto industry. The state with the largest decrease in initial claims was California, down 4,917. It reported fewer layoffs in the service industry.