There were 333,000 first-time claims for unemployment insurance last week, the Employment and Training Administration says. Claims were up 1.5 percent from the previous week's 328,000 — and basically remained at the lower end of the range where they've stayed for the better part of the last two years.
Bloomberg News dissects the report and finds good news:
"The fewest workers applied for U.S. unemployment benefits over the past month since before the last recession, indicating the labor market is making progress. The number of claims in the four weeks ended Aug. 3 declined to 335,500 on average, the least since November 2007."
Reuters also puts a positive spin on the story:
"The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits rose slightly last week but was near its lowest level since before the 2007-09 recession, a hopeful sign for the U.S. economy."
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