WASHINGTON: The number of Americans filing new jobless benefits claims fell sharply last week to its lowest level since the early days of the 2007-09 recession, a sign the job market is still healing even though the economy remains weak.
Other data yesterday showed a narrowing of the US trade gap in March, although drops in imports and exports offered warning signs over the strength of domestic and foreign demand. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 18,000 to a seasonally adjusted 324,000 last week, the Labour Department said.
The claims report runs counter to a growing number of signals that economic activity softened in March and April, a phenomena economists have dubbed the spring swoon because it also happened in the previous two years.
“Growth slowed between the first and second quarters, but the claims data suggest that the extent of this slowing was limited,” said Daniel Silver, an economist at JPMorgan in New York.
The data on claims has no direct bearing on the Labour Department’s monthly employment report for April due today. However, it suggests employers are feeling less pressure to lay workers off, even if they have cut back on hiring.
Analysts had expected 345,000 new jobless claims last week, and the positive signal from the data sent US stock prices higher, while yields on US government debt rose. An interest rate cut from the European Central Bank also lifted investor sentiment.
Reuters
