Unexpected fall for jobless claims (Reuters) (20-01-2011)

WASHINGTON – U.S. jobless claims had an unexpected drop last week showing their biggest decline since February in a sight of relief for the U.S. labor market.

The number of Americans filing for first-time unemployment benefits dropped sharply to 404,000 from a downwardly revised reading of 441,000 in the prior week,  while the 37,000 drop in claims was the biggest since the week that ended Feb 6, when claims fell by 51,000. Analysts had expected weekly jobless claims to fall to 420,000.

According to a Labor Department official, the larger-than-expected decline was partly explained by jobless claims returning to trend after the big rise the earlier week, which may have been skewed by the holiday season.

The four-week moving average of new claims, which strips out short-term volatility, dropped by 4,000 to 411,750.

The total number of Americans on benefit rolls, including extended benefits under emergency government programs, jumped to 9.6 million in the week ended January 1 from 9.2 million the prior week.

Source: Reuters