Jobless claims fall, but still stuck

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The number of Americans filing for first-time unemployment benefits fell last week, but continued to drift in the same range they have been for about a year, signaling ongoing weakness in the labor market.

There were 452,000 initial jobless claims filed in the week ended Oct. 16, down 23,000 from an upwardly revised 475,000 the previous week, according to the Labor Department's weekly report.

Economists surveyed by Briefing.com were expecting 455,000 new claims.

The weekly figure has been stuck in a narrow range since last November, hovering in the mid- to upper-400,000 range, and even ticking slightly above 500,000 in mid-August.

The 4-week moving average of initial claims -- a number that tries to smooth out week-to-week volatility -- was 458,000, down 4,250 from the previous week.

"The underlying trend in claims still looks resolutely flat, which means we see little chance of any sustained improvement in the private sector payroll numbers any time soon," said Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics.

Shepherdson added that in order for jobless claims to drop meaningfully, the credit environment, particularly for small businesses, must improve. He expects those better conditions will gradually emerge over the next year.