Readers visit the 23rd Library of Congress National Book Festival in Washington, D.C., the United States, Aug. 12, 2023. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

WASHINGTON, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) -- The number of individuals applying for U.S. unemployment benefits dropped to the lowest level since February, according to the data released Thursday by the U.S. Labor Department.

The job market continues to be resilient, despite record high interest rates, at a time when there is no end in sight to the most aggressive Federal Reserve rate hike cycle in decades.

Initial claims for state-level benefits dropped to 216,000 from 229,000 the previous week, during the week that concluded on Sept. 2.

This occurred amid the worst inflation in decades.