MW: Weekly first-time jobless claims fall to 496,000
By Mike Maynard
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The number of people filing first-time claims for state unemployment benefits dropped to a seasonally adjusted 466,000 in the week ended Nov. 21, the Labor Department reported. The drop compared to a revised 501,000 who filed initial claims in the week ended Nov. 14. The consensus forecast among economists surveyed by MarketWatch had been for 495,000 initial claims in the latest week. The latest number snaps a string running a little more than a year during which first-time claims exceeded the 500,000 mark.
