WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of people who applied for unemployment benefits last week fell to the lowest level since April, which suggests employers could be stepping up hiring.
The Labor Department says applications for unemployment benefits dropped to a seasonally adjusted 390,000, the third decline in four weeks. The four-week average, a less volatile measure, fell to 400,000, also the lowest point since April.
The downward trend in unemployment benefit applications suggests businesses are laying off fewer workers. Still, applications need to consistently drop below 375,000 to signal sustained job gains. They haven't been at that level since February.
Complete your profile to continue reading and get FREE access to BenefitsPRO, part of your ALM digital membership.
Your access to unlimited BenefitsPRO content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking benefits news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.