According to Bloomberg, fewer Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, showing that firings have not picked up following the partial government shutdown.
Jobless claims decreased by 9,000 to 336,000 in the week ended Nov. 2 from 345,000 the prior period, the Labor Department reported today in Washington. The median forecast of 53 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a decrease to 335,000. No states estimated their data last week, and there was nothing unusual in the figures, the Labor Department said.