First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly showed a modest decrease in the week ended August 4th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday.
The report showed that initial jobless claims fell to 361,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 367,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to edge up to 367,000 from the 365,000 originally reported for the previous week.
At the same time, the report showed that the less volatile four-week moving average crept up to 368,250 from the previous week's revised average of 366,000.
by RTT Staff Writer
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