The average number of people seeking U.S. 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 said Thursday that 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 seasonally adjusted consumer price index dropped 0.3 percent in November from October, the Labor Department said Friday. Gas prices fell 7.4 percent, the steepest drop in nearly four years. That offset a 0.2 percent rise in food prices.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell for a third straight week last week, but still remain too volatile to offer a clear signal on labor market conditions. Initial jobless claims dropped 25,000 to a seasonally adjusted 370,000.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits dropped for a second straight week last week, unwinding some of the surge related to Hurricane Sandy, which has muddled the labor market picture. Initial claims dropped 23,000 to a seasonally adjusted 393,000.
The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits surged by 78,000 to a seasonally adjusted 439,000 last week, a 1.5-year high and a sign that superstorm Sandy dented the U.S. economy by leaving tens of thousands of people out of work.
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Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 355,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday. The report is a sign the labor market's slow recovery is gaining traction, although Hurricane Sandy's impact on the Northeast may have distorted the data.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, a sign the labor market's slow recovery was gaining traction. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 9,000 to a seasonally adjusted 363,000, below the median forecast in a Reuters poll of 370,000.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, giving a clearer sign that the labor market is healing after wild fluctuations in claims data at the beginning of the month.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, giving a clearer sign that the labor market is healing after wild fluctuations in claims data at the beginning of the month.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose 46,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 388,000, reversing a sharp decline in the prior week but still pointing to a labor market that is slowly healing.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell sharply last week to the lowest level in more than four and a half years, according to government data on Thursday that suggested improvement in the labor market.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits climbed 4,000 to a seasonally adjusted 367,000, the Labor Department said. The prior week's figure was revised up to show 4,000 more applications than previously reported.
U.S. private employers added 162,000 jobs in September, topping economists' expectations, a report by a payrolls processor showed on Wednesday. Economists surveyed by Reuters had forecast the ADP National Employment Report would show a gain of 143,000 jobs.
The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits fell last week to the lowest level in two months, a hopeful sign for a labor market that has struggled to gain traction in recent months.