From the DOL:

The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending Oct. 24 was 5,749,000, a decrease of 68,000 from the preceding week’s revised level of 5,817,000.

So…great!… those 68,000 people found jobs?  Nah…as Denninger points out

90,239 fell off the government’s “official statistics” and rolled into “extended programs.”  That means that net-on-net the picture got worse by 22,239. It gets even better than this, however, as we are now far enough into the mess that people are rolling off even the extended benefit programs in many states!  There is no current tabulation of that count, but any number greater than zero simply adds to the malaise.

Don’t be fooled it’s getting worse – not better.

Dean Baker reasons that 10.5% is about the minimum to expect for year end 2009:

Even if the economy, lost no additional jobs between April and the end of the year, then the unemployment rate would still rise to about 9.5 percent by December. If it loses 1.6 million jobs (200,000 per month), then the unemployment rate will be 10.5 percent by December. At this point, this is probably about as optimistic a scenario as can be believed.

So, if a job loss rate of 200,000 per month through year end and an ending level of  10.5% is optimistic, then a job loss rate of 400,000 per month through year end would result in 1.0% more unemployment than 10.5%, or a 11.5% level at year end.