CALIFORNIA : BRIEFLY / THE ECONOMY : New Jobless Claims Hit Quarter-Century Low
Associated Press
New claims for unemployment benefits dropped unexpectedly last week to the lowest level in 25 years, but economists said much of the decline was due to Hurricane Floyd keeping some people from getting to claims offices. A total of 272,000 Americans filed new claims for jobless benefits, down 17,000 from the previous week, the Labor Department said. That was the fewest since Jan. 5, 1974, when claims totaled 269,000.
