Initial Jobless Claims Drop by 20,000

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he number of U.S. workers filing for initial unemployment benefits fell by 20,000 the week ended May 14, reversing three weeks of increases, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Jobless claims fell to 321,000 claims, Labor said. That was below economists’ forecast of a drop to 330,000, Bloomberg reported.

The four-week moving average, a less volatile measure, rose to 329,750 from 324,250.

The number of people filing continuing jobless claims rose to 2.601 million the week ended May 7, up slightly from 2.596 million the previous week.

The four-week average of continuing claims fell to 2.583 million, a four-year low.