Applications for unemployment insurance fell to 262,000 in the week leading up to Valentine’s Day, the Labor Department reported Thursday morning, after a sharp drop the week before.
Economists had expected a significant rebound in jobless claims to around 275,000.
The four-week moving average of claims fell by 8,000 to 273,250.
Jobless claims, which are seasonally adjusted and published on a weekly basis, are considered a top leading indicator for the economy. Fewer applications for unemployment benefits suggests fewer layoffs and greater job growth.
Previously, it had appeared that claims had bottomed out during the fall and were headed upward. But Thursday’s initial claims were the lowest since last November.
Claims are now running well below the 300,000 to 325,000 level that economists think would entail net job losses. In one more week, it will have been a full year since the first-time claims numbers hit the 300,000 mark.
