Chicago Fed estimates U.S. unemployment rate remains largely stable

An estimate released Monday by the Chicago Fed showed the U.S. unemployment rate remained largely stable over the past two months, with the government shutdown delaying the release of official data. The Fed's real-time unemployment rate forecast indicates an October unemployment rate of 4.35%, compared to 4.34% in September. The latest official data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in early September showed an unemployment rate of 4.3% in August. The Chicago Fed said its estimate likely only partially reflects the layoffs of federal employees due to the government shutdown. Its methodology combines data from official sources with private sector sources such as job search websites, surveys, and payroll firms. (Jinshi)