Applications for jobless benefits in the U.S. retreat after three weeks of elevated claims

By MATT OTT
AP Business Writer

Applications for unemployment benefits fell significantly last week after it appeared claims had reached a modestly elevated level in recent weeks. U.S. applications for jobless claims fell by 26,000 to 239,000 for the week ending June 24, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists were expecting the elevated claims numbers to continue above 260,000, where they had settled the past three weeks. The four-week moving average of claims, which evens out some of the weekly fluctuations, rose by 1,500 to 257,500. Jobless claims applications are seen as representative of the number of layoffs in a given week.