2021.08.1912:37:00UTC+00U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Drop More Than Expected

A report released by the Labor Department on Thursday showed a continued decrease in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended August 14th.

The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell to 348,000, a decrease of 29,000 from the previous week's revised level or 377,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to edge down to 363,000 from the 375,000 originally reported for the previous week.

Initial jobless claims decreased for the fourth consecutive week, falling to their lowest level since hitting 256,000 in the week ended March 14, 2020.