Weekly US unemployment aid applications fall to 340K, cutting monthly average to 5-year low
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The number of Americans seeking unemployment aid fell to a seasonally adjusted 340,000 last week, driving down the four-week average to its lowest level in five years. The drop is a positive sign ahead of Friday's report on February job growth.
The Labor Department says applications fell 7,000 in the week ended March 2. That's near five-year lows reached in January. And the four-week average, a less volatile measure, dropped 7,000 to 348,750. That's the lowest since March 2008, just a few months into the Great Recession.
Weekly applications are a proxy for layoffs. When they fall, it suggests that companies are shedding fewer jobs. More hiring may follow.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Economists forecast that employers added 152,000 jobs in February and the unemployment rate dipped to 7.8 percent from 7.9 percent.