The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, suggesting the labour market stateside continues to expand at a solid clip even as economic growth has stalled.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 20,000 to a seasonally-adjusted 268,000 for the week ended March 28, the U.S. Labor Department said on Thursday.
Claims for the prior week were revised to show 6,000 more applications received than previously reported.
Economists had forecast claims rising to 285,000 last week.
The four-week moving average of claims, considered a better measure of labour market trends as it irons out week-to-week volatility, fell 14,750 to 285,500 last week.
