New claims are dropping, though total claims are still high.

For the week ending in December 26, new claims for unemployment benefits in the US were measured at approximately 787,000. This is the first time in at least a month where new unemployment claims dropped below 800,000. Besides being a general step in the right direction for the struggling American labor force, it also managed to beat economist projections, many of which expected the numbers to increase in the last week of December to approximately 828,000.

Of the new unemployment claims, approximately 308,262 of them are specifically for pandemic unemployment assistance. This is also an improvement, as it’s about an 88,000 drop from the week prior. Economists are relieved to see the numbers dropping again, as they had previously dipped below 700,000 in October before jumping back up almost immediately after.

However, while these small declines are undoubtedly a positive, unemployment is still at an all-time high in the United States. As of the week ending in December 12, a grand total of 19.6 million claims for unemployment benefits had been filed. In comparison to the same time last year, with only around 1.83 million continuing claims, the US labor market still has a long way to go.

“A year to forget will be anything but for the 19.5 million Americans collecting some form of unemployment compensation as of mid-December,” said Bankrate Chief Financial Analyst Greg McBride.

“While the job market prospects for 2021 are brighter, it will take the first half of the year for that momentum to build. Elevated unemployment will be with us long after the virus is vanquished.”

“While Congress has taken the first steps to avert the worst of the unemployment crisis, the need for additional jobless aid won’t end as the year turns over,” Century Foundation labor expert Andrew Stettner said.