Even fewer people applied for unemployment benefits last week than the two weeks prior, during which the number had hovered at a four-year low. The U.S. Department of Labor reported on Thursday that 351,000 people had applied for the benefits, 2,000 fewer than the previous two weeks' 353,000. The four-week moving average actually had a more significant drop, falling 5,500 to 354,000 from 359,500.
For numbers geeks, that's kind of unique, as the four-week average is considered to be a more stable number. The jobs news comes a day after the U.S. gross domestic product got revised upward to 3 percent, so stocks are already gearing up for a rise, The Wall Street Journal reports. Now if only the weather would clear up, we could start talking about a sunny day on Wall Street.
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Adam Martin



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