Weekly jobless claims in the U.S. fall slightly even as four-week average continues to increase,
reflecting ongoing weakness in the job market.
While the Labor Department reported that applications for unemployment benefits dropped
to 432,000, down by 13,000 from the previous week, the four-week average -- which most experts
agree is a better indicator of the condition of the job market -- climbed to 445,750,
the highest level in almost seven years.
It was the fifth straight week that jobless claims were above the 400,000 mark, and expectations
are the there will be an eighth straght month of job losses when August numbers are released
in two weeks.
