Jobless claims drop slightly

THE number of newly laid-off workers requesting unemployment benefits slipped last week, the latest sign the US employment picture is slowly brightening.

The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell by 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 462,000. That's close to Wall Street analysts' estimates of 460,000, according to Thomson Reuters, and the second straight drop.

The figures come after other mildly positive news on employment. Job openings rose in January to their highest level in almost a year, the department said on Tuesday. And the unemployment rate was unchanged at 9.7 per cent in February, the department said last week, better than analysts expected. The jobless rate hasn't risen since October.

Still, the economy has a long way to go to repair the damage done by the Great Recession. The nation has lost 8.4 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007. Many economists expect the unemployment rate to remain above 9.5 per cent through the end of this year.

The initial claims figures send 'a clear message ... of only grudging labor market improvement,' Pierre Ellis, an economist at Decision Economics, wrote in a note to clients.

The four-week average of claims, which smooths volatility, rose to 475,500, reflecting a sharp increase in claims last month. The four-week average has risen by about 25,000 since the beginning of the year, after falling for most of last year. The increase has raised concerns among economists that layoffs haven't slowed as much as hoped. But February's employment report restored some optimism.

- Indian Journalist.