Jobless Claims Fall Last Week

Washington, DC, June 28, 2007-- Claims for state unemployment fell to 313,000 last week, slightly lower than expected, the Labor Department said on Thursday.

Analysts were expecting claims to slip to 318,000 in the week ending June 23 from the previous week. New jobless claims were revised to 326,000 from 324,000 in the week ending June 16.

The four-week moving average of initial jobless claims, which smooths out week-to-week volatility, edged up to 316,000, the highest in seven weeks.

In the last six weeks, initial claims have held steady between 309,000 and 326,000. The high for the year so far was 356,000 in early February.

People drawing benefits after an initial week of aid fell 27,000 to 2.49 million in the week ending June 16, just below analyst expectations of 2.5 million.