The number of people filing initial applications for U.S. state unemployment benefits fell to a 42-year low last week, the government reported Thursday, suggesting the labor market remained strong despite a sudden slowdown in job growth over the past two months. Jobless claims fell 7,000 to 255,000 last week, the Labor Department said. Claims were last at such a low level in July, which had been the lowest since November 1973. It was the 32nd consecutive week that claims remained below 300,000, a level typically associated with a strengthening labor market. The four-week moving average of jobless claims—a less volatile measure considered a better indicator of labor-market trends—fell 2,250 to 265,000 last week, the lowest level since December 1973. The total number of people receiving unemployment benefits fell 50,000 last week to 2.16 million, the lowest reading since November 2000, suggesting that long-term unemployed Americans were finding jobs. The low level of layoffs is in contrast with the recent deceleration in employment growth. Employers added an average of 139,000 jobs per month in September and August, the weakest two-month increase since January 2014. The slowdown in hiring is puzzling because job openings are at a record high.
