The US Labor Department reported Thursday on the decrease in number of initial jobless claims by 22,000 to a seasonally adjusted 344,000 in the week ended Feb. 23. Claims have fallen for three of the last four weeks.
Claims for the prior week the Labor Department revised to 366,000 from 362,000 previously.
The number of continuing unemployment benefit claims fell by 91,000 to 3,074,000, that is the lowest level since June 2008.
Economists believe the labor market is strengthening when claims are below 400,000. But they warn that automatic cuts on 1 March can slow the economy and lead to higher unemployment. The unemployment rate was 7.9% in January.