WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell last week after a mini-spike earlier in December that boosted jobless claims to a five-month high.
Initial claims fell by 11,000 to a seasonally adjusted 271,000 in the seven days running from Dec. 6 to Dec. 12, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists polled by MarketWatch had expected claims to total 275,000.
A more reliable measure, the average of initial claims over the past month, fell by 250 to 270,500.
Weekly jobless claims are on track in 2015 to post the smallest annual average since 1973, reflecting an improved labor market and the lowest level of layoffs in years. A strong pace of hiring since 2011 has driven the unemployment rate down to a postrecession low of 5%.
With hiring up, layoffs down and wages showing some sign of upward pressure, the Federal Reserve on Wednesday decided the labor market was strong enough to justify the first increase in interest rates since 2006. The Fed lifted its benchmark short-term interest rate from near zero.
Meanwhile, some 2.24 million people collected weekly unemployment checks in the seven days ended Dec. 5. These so-called continuing claims were 7,000 lower compared to the prior week.
