Economic recovery seen as jobless claims dip to fouryear low | WPN World People News

New claims for unemployment benefits fell to 348,000 last week, a new four year low as the economic recovery continues to accelerate.

There were 5,000 fewer people filing jobless claims last week than in the previous week, the Labor Department said Thursday.

The figure beat forecasts, with economists expecting initial claims to rise by 4,000.

The moving four-week average, a more reliable gauge than weekly data, also decreased to 355,000.
The number of claims last week was the lowest since March 2008, when the effects of the just-beginning deep recession began hitting the labor market.

By early 2009, more than 600,000 people were filing for jobless benefits each week as the unemployment rate began shooting up.

New York and California showed the biggest improvements last week. Jobless claims dropped by 14,222 in New York and 4,696 in California because of fewer layoffs, the Labor Department said.

Economists say that weekly unemployment claims below 350,000 indicate that the economy is adding jobs at a significant pace, and Thursday's data adds to recent signs that the recovery is picking up steam.

The economy added an average of 245,000 new jobs from December through February, with the unemployment rate dropping to 8.3 per cent. Unemployment data for March is scheduled to be released April 6.

Economists at Barclays Capital said recent payrolls were likely helped by mild weather, suggesting that March job growth could be slower than the 227,000 gain in February.

They expect non-farm payrolls to rise about 200,000 this month, with the unemployment rate declining by a tenth of a percentage point to 8.2%.

The Labor Department report showed the number of continuing unemployment benefit claims--those drawn by workers for more than a week -- fell by 9,000 to a seasonally adjusted 3,352,000 in the week ended March 10. Continuing claims are reported with a one-week lag.

The number of workers requesting unemployment insurance was equivalent to 2.6% of employed workers paying into the system in the week ended March 10 -- a decline of a tenth of percentage point.

Source: Central America News.Net