Jobless claims down to lowest level in months

The number of initial jobless claims filed last week fell 2.5% to the lowest level in about seven months. The Labor Department said the seasonally adjusted figure of actual initial claims for the week ended Nov. 5 decreased by 10,000 to 390,000 from 400,000 the previous week, which was revised upward 3,000. Analysts surveyed by Econoday expected 400,000 new jobless claims last week with a range of estimates between 394,000 and 410,000. Most economists believe weekly jobless claims lower than 400,000 indicate the economy is expanding and jobs growth is strengthening. The four-week moving average, which is considered a less volatile indicator than weekly claims, declined by 5,250 claims to 400,000 from the prior week’s revised 405,250. The seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate for the week ended Oct. 29 stayed flat with the prior week at 2.9%, according to the Labor Department. The total number of people receiving some sort of federal unemployment benefits for the week ended Oct. 22 rose to about 6.84 million from 6.78 million the prior week. Write to Jason Philyaw. Follow him on Twitter: @jrphilyaw.