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Initial claims for state unemployment benefits
dropped 23,000 to a seasonally adjusted 264,000, its lowest
level since 2000, the Labor Department said on Thursday.
That suggests the labor market is gaining steam and could
bolster the view that the Federal Reserve will hike interest
rates next year when the jobless rate is expected to continue to
fall.
However, while the spike in layoffs during the 2007-2009
recession is decidedly in America's rear view mirror, the pace
of hiring has only increased modestly over the last year, and
Fed officials remain concerned about persistently low rates of
inflation.
Claims for the prior week were unrevised.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims rising to
290,000 for the week ended Oct. 11.
The four-week moving average of claims, considered a better
measure of labor market trends as it irons out week-to-week
volatility, fell 4,250 to 283,500, also its lowest level since
2000.
The Labor Department said there were no special factors
influencing the state level claims data.
The report showed the number of people still receiving benefits
after an initial week of aid rose 7,000 to 2.39 million in the
week ended Oct. 4.
(Reporting by Jason Lange; Editing by Paul Simao)
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