First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell by much more than expected in the week ended February 14th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday.
The report said initial jobless claims slid to 206,000, a decrease of 23,000 from the previous week's revised level of 229,000.
The Labor Department said the less volatile four-week moving average also edged down to 219,000, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week's revised average of 220,000.
Meanwhile, the report said continuing claims, a reading on the number of people receiving ongoing unemployment assistance, rose by 17,000 to 1.869 million in the week ended February 7th.
The four-week moving average of continuing claims also inched up to 1,845,250, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week's revised average of 1,844,250.