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"Economic conditions are moving upward at an accelerating pace"
- Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors
The number of Americans claiming for jobless benefits decreased to 388 thousand last week, the lowest level since May 2011, signaling gradual improvement in the U.S. employment market. Economists expected the reading to advance to 396 thousand.
"Economic conditions are moving upward at an accelerating pace," said Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors in Holland, Pennsylvania. "However, two major roadblocks stand in the way of solid growth: Rising oil prices and European debt issues."
Downward trend in unemployment claims should be treated with caution, considers Yelena Shulyatyeva, an economist at BNP Paribas. "We saw a similar downward drift in initial claims last fall owing to lower-than-usual seasonal layoffs that were not matched by an acceleration in payrolls," she said.