Good Job News

Good news on the job/economy front: Data Show U.S. Economy Picking Up Steam

The Labor Department said first-time filings for state unemployment aid fell 4,000 last week to 384,000 from the previous week, the Labor Department said. The number was broadly in line with analysts' expectations that claims would be 388,000.

"The jobless numbers were certainly encouraging. We got a decline and it suggests that the labor market is recovering," said Parul Jain, Nomura Securities International.

It was the second week in a row that claims came in under 400,000. Economists say claims above 400,000 suggest a deteriorating jobs market.

The drop also brought a decline in the closely watched four-week moving average of initial filings, seen as more reliable because it irons out weekly fluctuations.

The department said the average fell 4,250 to 390,750, also the lowest since early February.

Of course, the news, whiel encouraging, isn't perfect:

While the report suggested layoffs are slowing, it also showed unemployed workers are still having a tough time finding new jobs. For the week ended Oct. 4, the number of Americans claiming benefits after filing an initial claim climbed 58,000 to 3.67 million.