US initial jobless claims down 4,000 last week

By Mucahithan Avcioglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The number of Americans filing first-time unemployment claims fell by 4,000 to 233,000 last week, according to Labor Department data released on Thursday.

The figure came below market forecasts of 240,000 and was down from the previous week's upwardly revised level of 237,000.

The four-week moving average was 241,500 – a decrease of 3,750 from the previous week's upwardly revised level of 245,250.

In June, the US economy added 147,000 jobs, higher than forecasts of 111,000.

The unemployment rate fell to 4.1% in June from 4.2% in May, below market estimates.