"The labour market over the last several months has been pretty resilient given the overall pace of the rest of the economy"
- Tom Simons, an economist at Jefferies Group Inc.
New applications for the unemployment benefits in the world's biggest economy fell almost to the lowest levels in 2012 last week, adding to evidence that employers have picked up the pace of hiring. The Labor Department said that the number of people who applied for U.S. jobless benefits fell by 12,000 to 350,000 in the week ended December 22, down from 362,000 a week earlier.
In a separate report, the Conference Board said its gauge of consumer confidence tumbled this month to the lowest level in four months, as nation's leaders cannot agree on a deal to avoid the so-called "fiscal cliff". Index of sentiment dropped to 65.1, down from a revised 71.5 reading the prior month, and below analysts' forecast of a decline to 70.
Also Thursday, the Commerce Department's report showed that sales of new houses jumped in November to the highest level in more than two years, a sign property market is on the path of recovery. Sales climbed 4.4% last month to a seasonally adjusted 377,000 unit annual rate, compared to 361,000 units a month earlier. Today's data shows that despite the fact that labour and property market are recovering, consumers become more aware of the impact of the "fiscal- cliff".
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