Investing.com - The number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week fell more than expected and remained in territory consistent with a strengthening labor market, official data showed on Wednesday.
The number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending Nov. 18 fell by 13,000 to a seasonally adjusted 239,000 from the previous week’s total of 252,000, the U.S. Department of Labor said.
Analysts had expected jobless claims to fall to 240,000 last week.
The four-week moving average was 239,750, up 1,250 from the previous week. The monthly average is seen as a more accurate gauge of labor trends because it reduces volatility in the week-to-week data.
Continuing jobless claims edged up to 1.904 million from 1.868 million in the preceding week, compared to expectations for an increase to 1.882 million.