New claims for jobless benefits in the U.S. fell in the first week of February to reach the lowest level in two and a half years, boosting hopes that the labor market will start improving after a weak start to the year, according to Reuters. On Thursday, the Labor Department reported that initial claims for unemployment benefits fell by 36,000 in the week ending Feb. 5 to a seasonally adjusted 383,000, far outpacing forecasts from economists for a drop to 410,000. The decline brought the number of new claims to the lowest level since July 2008, and brought the four-week average of new claims down 16,000 to 415,500.
Meanwhile, a separate report from the Commerce Department showed that inventories at U.S. wholesalers grew by more than forecast in the last month of 2010 as sales quickened, according to Bloomberg. The data showed a 1% increase in wholesale inventories, which outpaced economists’ forecast for a 0.7% gain and comes after now change was recorded in inventories during November. The strong inventory growth indicates demand will remain strong for factory orders, which in turn is likely to provide continued strength for the manufacturing sector. Aaron Smith of Moody’s Analytics said the data “suggest growth is ready to take off.”
Click here to read the story on jobless claims from Reuters.
Click here for coverage of wholesale inventories from Bloomberg News.