Chicago Fed estimates US unemployment rate remains basically stable

According to Golden Ten Data, ChainCatcher reported that an estimate released by the Chicago Fed on Monday shows that the U.S. unemployment rate has remained basically stable over the past two months, while a government shutdown has delayed the release of official data. The regional Fed’s real-time unemployment rate forecast shows that the unemployment rate was 4.35% in October and 4.34% in September.

The latest official data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in early September showed that the unemployment rate in August was 4.3%. The Chicago Fed stated that its estimate may only partially reflect the furlough of federal employees caused by the government shutdown. Its methodology combines data from official sources as well as private sector channels, such as job websites, surveys, and payroll companies.