Unemployment Claims Fall, Trade Deficit Shrinks

By Jon E. Dougherty at 10 Nov 2011

(Newsroom America) -- New claims for unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level since April last week, as import prices and the U.S. trade deficit also shrank, reports said Thursday.

Initial claims for jobless benefits fell 10,000 to 390,000 during the week ending Nov. 5, the Labor Department said, just below the 400,000 expected by a number of analysts, Reuters reported.

Still, weekly totals remain well above pre-recession levels and have only dipped below 400,000 - a level economists say signifies improving economic conditions - 10 times over the past year.

At the same time, a separate government report showed U.S. import prices declining more than expected this month, easing some concerns about increasing inflationary pressures. Stripping out food and fuel costs, import prices fell 0.4 percent last month, the department said.

Meanwhile, the seasonally adjusted trade deficit was $43.1 billion, down from a revised $44.9 billion in August, according to Commerce Department figures.

Contact Jon E. Dougherty

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