US initial jobless claims fall by 19,000

ISTANBUL

The number of Americans filing first-time unemployment claims fell by 19,000 last week to 202,000, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.

The figure came in much lower than market estimates of 220,000, while the previous week's reading was revised up by 1,000 from 220,000 to 221,000.

The four-week moving average was 213,250, a decrease of 7,750 from the previous week's revised average.

The US economy added 199,000 jobs in November, while the unemployment rate fell to 3.7% from 3.9% in October.