ISTANBUL

The number of Americans filing first-time unemployment claims fell by 9,000 last week to 215,000, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.

The initial jobless claims were down from the previous week's upwardly revised level of 224,000.

The figure also came below the market forecast of 225,000.

The four-week moving average was 220,750 – down by 2,500 from the previous week's upwardly revised level of 223,250.

In March, the US economy added 228,000 jobs, much higher than forecasts of 137,000.

The unemployment rate unexpectedly rose to 4.2% in March from 4.1% the previous month.