New applications for unemployment benefits dropped last week, marking four months of historically low claims in a tight U.S. labor market.
Initial jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, fell to 200,000 last week from the previous week’s revised level of 211,000, the Labor Department said Thursday.
The weekly tally of new unemployment claims has remained near its lowest levels ever for months as employers hold on to workers and try to hire more, with the gap between job openings and unemployed workers seeking jobs remaining historically large.The four-week average for claims, which smooths out volatility in the weekly figures, dipped to 206,500 last week from 207,000 the previous week.
