According to the US Department of Labour the number of individuals filing for jobless benefits fell more-than-expected last week coming close to hitting a five-year low.
The number of claimants fell by 16,000 in the week ending April 19th to a seasonally adjusted figure of 339,000. Economists had been expecting the figure to fall by only 4,000 to 351,000. The figures have eased fears that the USA’s economic recovery has stalled and indicated that US companies have enough confidence to maintain current staffing levels and are in a position to add to their headcount should sales improve.
“The layoff side of the equation is improving quite a bit,” said Gennadiy Goldberg, a U.S. strategist at TD Securities Inc. in New York, who projected filings would drop to 340,000. “The big question is on the hiring side and whether that can actually pick up and bring down the unemployment rate.”
A Labour Department spokesman said that there was nothing unusual in today’s decline as big swings in claims are common this month because of layoffs related to school holidays. The number of people continuing to collect jobless benefits fell by 93,000 to 3 million in the week ended April 13, the lowest since May 2008. The continuing claims figure does not include the number of workers receiving extended benefits under federal programs.
Next week sees the Labour Department release its report on April’s US employment situation.
Current US Dollar Exchange Rates
As of 14:25 pm GMT
The US Dollar to Pound Sterling exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 0.6468
The US Dollar to Euro exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 0.7648
The US Dollar to Australian Dollar exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 0.9682
The US Dollar to Canadian Dollar exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 1.0203
The US Dollar to Japanese Yen exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 99.1665
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