New Requests for Unemployment Benefits Drop

First-time claims for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, but remain well-above normal levels.

According to the Labor Department, 473,000 new requests for unemployment benefits were made, a drop of 31,000 from the previous week. According to most economists, in a healthy economy first-time claims should be under 400,000.

First-time unemployment claims had risen each of the previous three weeks. That helped lead the four-week average, which is considered a less-volatile matrix, to rise to 486,750, which the Associated Press reports is the most since November 2009.