AlHijjah 23, 1433, Nov 8, 2012, SPA -- The number of people seeking new unemployment benefits fell last week, the government reported Thursday in a possible sign of a healing job market. The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell 8,000 to 355,000, below economist expectations of a rise to 370,000. The four-week moving average, considered a better measure of labor-market trends because its smoothes weekly volatility, rose by 3,250 to 370,500. Economists generally believe a reading below 400,000 indicates an increase in employment. A department spokesman said Sandy, a huge storm that hit the northeastern United States on October 29, increased jobless claims in some states but also reduced claims in at least one state because power outages prevented the state from collecting claim reports. The storm could affect weekly applications for up to four weeks, he said.
