WASHINGTON: New claims for US unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, official data showed Thursday, adding to recent signs that the ailing job market is recovering.
The Labor Department said 351,000 initial jobless claims were filed in the week ending March 10, a decline of 14,000 from the prior week's upwardly revised number.
Last week's claims number was smaller than most analysts expected: The average estimate was for a decline to 355,000.
The improvement underscored a slowing trend in initial jobless claims, an indicator of the pace of layoffs.
The four-week moving average, which helps reduce week-to-week volatility, was unchanged from the previous week's revised average of 355,750.
The weekly claims number came on the heels of last Friday's labor market data for February that showed solid job growth as businesses stepped up hiring.
The economy created 227,000 new jobs in February, topping the 200,000 mark for the third straight month, while the unemployment rate held steady at 8.3 percent, the Labor Department reported.
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