New unemployment claims fall

Labor Department says 366,000 filed for benefits last week for the first time, falling more than expected.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- New filings for unemployment claims fell last week, according to a report released Thursday by the Labor Department.

According to the report, 366,000 people filed for unemployment for the first time in the week ended March 22, down 9,000 from a revised 375,000 reported in the previous week.

A consensus of economists polled by Briefing.com had expected to see initial jobless claims to fall to 371,000 from the originally reported 378,000.

Much of the prior report's new claims numbers were inflated by an ongoing strike in the automobile industry, according to Andrew Gledhill, an economist with Moody's Economy.com. The fact that claims only retreated 9,000 this week is "further evidence the labor market is having difficulty," he said.