Jobless Claims Fall; Trade Gap Narrows

Today's news that the number of initial claims for unemployment insurance benefits being filed for the week ending 26 November 2011 ticked back up over the 400,000 mark is right on track with the prediction we published over a month ago. Here's that prediction:

WASHINGTON — The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, which could ease fears of a marked deterioration in labour market conditions after a surprise stumble in job growth in March.

In another positive sign that the U.S.

Initial claims for US jobless insurance benefits fell for a second straight week, official data showed Thursday, suggesting modest improvement in the troubled labor market.The seasonally adjusted number of new unemployment claims in the week ending November 7 fell to 502,000, a drop of 12,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 514,000, the Labor Department said.The fresh data was better than the figure expected by most analysts of around 510,000.

Initial claims for US jobless insurance benefits fell for a second straight week, official data showed Thursday, suggesting modest improvement in the troubled labor market.The seasonally adjusted number of new unemployment claims in the week ending November 7 fell to 502,000, a drop of 12,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 514,000, the Labor Department said.The fresh data was better than the figure expected by most analysts of around 510,000.

New claims for unemployment benefits in the United States fell unexpectedly, according to the latest weekly data Thursday, showing fresh signs of stabilization in the ailing labor market.The seasonally adjusted number of new unemployment claims in the week ending November 28 fell to 457,000, down 1.1 percent from the previous week's downwardly revised figure of 462,000, the Labor Department said.Most analysts had expected new jobless claims would rise to 480,000.