US initial jobless claims drop to six-week low
The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell to a six-week low last week, according to data from the Labor Department on Thursday.
Jobless claims declined by 3,000 to 218,000 from the previous week’s level, which was revised up by 3,000 to 221,000. Economists had been expecting a level of 220,000 claims.
Meanwhile, the four-week moving average came in at 221,000, down 4,000 from the previous week’s level, which was revised up by 750.
The four-week average is considered more reliable as it smooths out sharp fluctuations in the more volatile weekly figures, giving a more accurate picture of the health of the labour market.
Continuing claims - which represent the number of people already collecting unemployment benefits - were up 22,000 to 1.72m.