Washington, DC, December 22, 2005--First-time applications for state unemployment benefits fell by 13,000 to a seasonally adjusted 318,000 in the week ending Dec. 17, the Labor Department reported Thursday.
Initial claims filed in the previous week were revised higher by 2,000 to 331,000. Economists were expecting jobless claims to dip to 326,000.
The four-week moving average of new claims fell by 4,750 to reach 324,500. The moving average is considered a better gauge of the labor market since it smoothes out the effects of one-time events like holidays and weather.
