U.S. weekly initial jobless claims fell 2,000 last week, touching a four-year low of 302,000 claims, the Labor Department reported Thursday.
The four-week average of new claims dropped by 4,000 to stand at 311,750, the lowest since Nov. 4, 2000. Read the full report.
Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had been expecting claims to rise to 316,000. See Economic Calendar.
The number of people collecting unemployment benefits fell by 14,000 to 2.72 million, as of the week ended Feb. 5. The insured unemployment rate, meanwhile, fell 0.1 percentage point to 2.1 percent in the same week.
For this complete story, please visit U.S. Weekly Initial Unemployment Claims at 4-year Low.
