Unemployment Claims Fall to 26-Year Low

The number of Americans signing up for first-time jobless benefits declined last week to the lowest level in more than 26 years. Initial claims for state unemployment insurance benefits fell by 6,000 to 260,000 in the week ended April 1 from the previous week, the Labor Department said. It was the lowest figure since 256,000 in the week ending Dec. 1, 1973, and defied Wall Street expectations for a rise to 270,000. The closely watched four-week moving average fell for the fifth consecutive week, to 262,750 from 268,000 the previous week. A separate report showed that U.S. corporations announced 58% more job cuts in March than in February, the fifth-straight monthly increase. International outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said job-cut announcements for March totaled 55,783, the largest number since September, compared with 35,415 in February. However, the monthly total was 19% below the number of job cuts announced the same month a year ago.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said stocks held by U.S. wholesalers rose 0.7% in February, the 13th straight monthly gain, while wholesale sales fell 0.2%, their first decline since July. The stock-to-sales ratio--a measure of how long it takes to deplete inventories at the current sales pace--rose to 1.28 months’ worth in February from 1.27 months’ worth in January.