Jobless Claims Dip by 7,000 for Week

Initial jobless claims fell by 7,000 last week to 333,000, the Labor Department said Thursday.

The less-volatile four-week moving average fell to 338,750 from a two-year high of 340,750 the previous week, Labor said.

The claims were within the range of economists’ forecasts, Bloomberg reported.

The number of people continuing to collect benefits rose to 2.639 million for the previous week ended Dec. 1, from 2.601 million the previous week.