Unemployment claims in the United States dropped to the lowest monthly average in 15 years. A downtick in Americans applying for unemployment benefits happened last week, indicating an improving U.S. economy.
The U.S. Labor Department reported Thursday that weekly applications dropped 1,000 to 264,000 last week, according to The Guardian. That is slightly higher than the 15-year low hit three weeks ago: 271,750 Americans.
Meanwhile, the number of Americans who received unemployment benefits in April stayed at 2.29 million. That figure is 17 percent lower from April 2014.
The low level of unemployment claims indicates that job growth is steady in the U.S. Even with the slow economic growth, it is also a sign that employers have confidence in the national economy.
Employers created 23,000 U.S. jobs in April. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate dropped to 5.4 percent, a 7-year low, according to The News Herald.
The number of people receiving benefits was unchanged at 2.29 million. That is down 17 percent from one year earlier.
Jim O'Sullivan, a U.S. economist, said to clients that the unemployment claims figures do not indicate that the U.S. labor market is weakening. Instead, the opposite is happening.
It is possible that the U.S. economy shrank during Quarter 1 (Q1). Reasons that economists list include low oil prices, a strong U.S. dollar, and frigid winter weather.
A higher U.S. dollar value ironically has a negative effect on the national economy. U.S. exports have higher price tags abroad, decreasing sales.
As indicated by factors such as the falling unemployment claims, most economists believe that the U.S. economy is expanding in Q2. However, the economic recovery has been slower than they had projected.
A report on Wednesday reported that U.S. retail sales and restaurant sales were weak in April. Even with April's solid job gains and dropping gas prices, consumer spending is lower than previous projections.