India, Jan. 30 -- A report released by the Labor Department on Thursday showed first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits pulled back by more than expected in the week ended January 25th.
The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell to 207,000, a decrease of 16,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 223,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to slip to 220,000.
"Initial claims surprised to the downside in the week ended January 25, as the recent increase in claims in California likely related to the fires in Los Angeles was largely reversed," said Nancy Vanden Houten, Lead U.S. Economist at Oxford Economics
The report also said the less volatile four-week moving average edged down to 212,500, a decrease of 1,...