By Jeffry Bartash WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The number of Americans who applied last week for new jobless benefits fell sharply, though it's unclear whether part of the drop stemmed from the huge snowstorm that battered the Northeast. Applications for initial unemployment benefits sank 27,000 to a seasonally adjusted 341,000 in the week ended Feb. 9, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch expected a much smaller drop to 360,000 from a revised 368,000 in the prior week. Claims are now just slightly above a five-year low. The government had to use estimates last week for two states, Illinois and Connecticut. State employment offices in Connecticut were closed after several feet of snow fell. The average of new claims over the past month, meanwhile, edged up by 1,500 to 352,500. The four-week average reduces seasonal volatility in the weekly data and is seen as a more accurate barometer of labor-market trends. Also, Labor said continuing claims decreased by 130,000 to a seasonally adjusted 3.1million in the week ended Feb. 2. Continuing claims reflect the number of people already receiving benefits. Labor revised initial claims from two weeks ago up to 368,000 from an original reading of 366,000, based on more complete data collected at the state level.

Source