U.S. initial jobless claims fall

The number of Americans applying for jobless benefits for the first time has fallen to its lowest level in four weeks, the U.S. Labour Department said Thursday.

Initial jobless claims dropped by 11,000 to 448,000. It was the second consecutive weekly drop and is another tentative indicator thatthe U.S. economy is gradually improving.

The figure was slightly higher than what economists had expected and the four-week rolling average rose slightly to 462,500. That number isstill well above the 425,000 rolling averagethat economists want to see before they cansayjob growth is sustained.

Continuing jobless claims fell by 18,000 to 4.65 million.

"Going forward, we expect continued improvement in labour markets to be reflected in a further moderation in the pace of layoffs, as well as a continued pickup in the pace of hiring," said RBC economist Nathan Janzen in a morning commentary.

"These gains are expected to help to sustain the overall economic recovery during 2010," he wrote.

April's U.S. unemployment report will be released May 7. It's expected to show that U.S. non-farm payrolls grew by 175,000, but the jobless rate is expected to remain stuck at 9.7 per cent.

8 million jobs lost

Since the recession began in the U.S. in December 2007, some eight million Americans have lost their jobs.

U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke saidWednesdaythe U.S. labour market "continues to improve."

News thatfewer people were filing for unemployment benefits helped to light a fire understock marketsThursday.

The Dow Jones industrial average was up 121 points to11,167 at 11:30 a.m. ET, while the S&P/TSX composite index gained 114 points to 12,190.

The stock market is also responding tobetter earning reports from big U.S. companies.

Almost half of the businesses listed in the S&P 500 index have reported their financial results for the latest quarter. So far, their operating earnings are 76 per cent higher than in the same quarter a year earlier.