Bloomberg (05/09/13) Alex Kowalski

The number of people who applied for regular state unemployment-insurance benefits ticked down 4,000 to 323,000 in the week ending May 4, hitting the lowest level since January 2008, the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Economists forecast 335,000 claims, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. The four-week average of new jobless claims fell 6,250 to 336,750, hitting the lowest level since November 2007, near the start of the recession.

Dismissals have dropped in 2013 as employers rely on existing staff to meet demand. Further advances in the labor market hinge on whether hiring will pick up, helping put some of the 11.7 million unemployed Americans back to work and giving consumer spending a lift.