South Dakota unemployment claims saw a slight dip in the latest report from the Department of Labor.

Initial weekly claims for state unemployment benefits came in at 858 for the week ending December 12, 2002. This is 46 claims fewer than last week's total of 904.

The state would typically process 200 to 300 initial weekly claims in a pre-coronavirus environment.

Continued state claims were down 131 from last week with 3,793 being processed for the week ending Dec. 5. Continued claims represent the number of unemployed workers eligible for and receiving benefits after their initial claim.

$833,000 was paid out in state benefits last week. The Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund balance was $120.6 million on Dec. 13.

Nationally, first-time unemployment claims hit their highest level since September as more states ramp up mandated shutdowns of 'non-essential' businesses amid rising COVID-19 case counts.

885,000 people filed an initial claim for the week ending December 12 according to Fox Business. That is higher than the 800,000 analysts were expecting but much lower than the 7 million claims filed in a single week back in mid-March.

Continuing claims fell 273,000 from the prior week to 5.5 million.

Overall, almost 70 million Americans, or 40% of the entire workforce, have filed an unemployment claim.

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