Weekly jobless claims drop to 204,000 — Labor Department

By Scott Kanowsky 

Investing.com — The number of Americans filing for unemployment insurance unexpectedly fell last week, according to new Labor Department data on Thursday.

Seasonally-adjusted initial jobless claims fell to 204,000 in the week ending December 31, decreasing from a downwardly revised figure of 223,000. Economists had predicted that the reading would inch up to 225,000.

The four-week moving average, which aims to account for volatility in weekly readings, dropped by 6,750 to 213,750.

Meanwhile, continuing claims — a gauge of the amount of U.S. residents filing for ongoing unemployment benefits — declined to 1,694,000 from 1,718,000 last week. Forecasts had anticipated the number would slip to 1,708,000.

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