Initial claims for jobless benefits fell last week, pushing the four-week moving average deeper into historically low territory and signaling that layoffs remain scarce across the U.S. labor market.
The Labor Department said Thursday that new claims for state unemployment benefits dropped by 9,000 to 202,000 in the week ended March 28, from the prior week’s revised level of 211,000. The four-week moving average, which smooths out weekly volatility and is often seen as a better guide to labor-market conditions, fell by 3,000 to 207,750.
That left the four-week average in roughly the bottom four percent of readings in data going back to 1967. Outside of this year’s earlier readings, claims have not been this low since January 2024.
The latest report suggests employers are still holding on to workers even amid market volatility, slower growth at the end of last year, and concern
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