Mumbai, Nov. 21 -- First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell by slightly more than expected in the week ended November 15th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday.
The report said initial jobless claims dipped to 220,000, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week's level of 228,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to edge down to 223,000.
The Labor Department said the less volatile four-week moving average also slipped to 224,250, a decrease of 3,000 from the previous week's average of 227,250.
Meanwhile, the report said continuing claims, a reading on the number of people receiving ongoing unemployment assistance climbed by 28,000 to 1.974 million in the week ended November 8th.
With the...