US jobless claims fall
WASHINGTON: New claims for unemployment benefits in the United States fell last week to the lowest level in a month, official data showed Thursday.
Initial jobless claims dropped to 414,000 in the week ending June 11, a decline of four percent from the prior week, the Labor Department said.
The decline was steeper than economists' forecasts of 421,000 claims.
The four-week moving average showed claims stood at 424,750, unchanged from the prior week's revised level.
Jobless claims have remained stuck above the 400,000 threshold since early April as employers appear reluctant to add payrolls amid a foundering economic recovery.
The unemployment rate rose to 9.1 percent last month and the economy added only 54,000 jobs, one quarter of the February-April pace.
Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011
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