By Jeffry Bartash, MarketWatch
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The number of people who applied last week for new unemployment benefits fell near a five-year low, though the decline probably reflected temporary distortions that often occur after the Easter holiday and not a marked improved in the U.S. labor market.
Initial jobless claims dropped by 16,000 to a seasonally adjusted 339,000 in the week ended April 20, the Labor Department said Thursday. That’s the second lowest reading in 2013 and approached levels last seen in January 2008.
Economists surveyed by MarketWatch expected claims, a rough gauge of layoffs, to fall to 351,000 from a revised 355,000 in the prior week
