Jobless Claims, Good News | featured news

The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level in more than five years, a positive signal for the labor market ahead of Friday's April jobs report.

The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment aid barely changed last week, while the average over the past month fell to a fresh five-year low. The decline in layoffs is helping strengthen the job market.

Fewer Americans sought unemployment aid last week, reducing the average number of weekly applications last month to a five-year low. The drop shows that fewer layoffs are strengthening the job market. The Labor Department says applications fell 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 332,000. That pushed the four-week average to 346,750, the lowest since March 2008, just several months after the Great Recession began. Applications are a proxy for layoffs. They have fallen nearly 13 percent since November.

The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, suggesting a pick-up in the labor market recovery.

The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, suggesting some traction in the labor market recovery.

The number of Americans seeking unemployment aid fell last week to the lowest level in five years, evidence that employers are cutting fewer jobs and may step up hiring.

The number of Americans seeking unemployment aid plummeted to a five-year low last week, a hopeful sign the job market may be improving.

The average number of people seeking unemployment benefits over the past month fell to the lowest level since March 2008, a sign that the job market is healing. The Labor Department says weekly applications dropped 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 350,000 in the week ended Dec. 22. The four-week average, a less volatile measure, fell to a nearly five-year low of 356,750.

The number of people seeking unemployment benefits fell last week by 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 355,000, a possible sign of a healing job market. But officials cautioned that the figures were distorted by Superstorm Sandy.

First-time claims for unemployment benefits continued their recent roller-coaster ride last week with the second big drop in the last month, but economists said the overall trend is consistent with moderate -- though not great -- job growth.