Weekly jobless claims fall 8,000 to 215,000
Continuing claims increase 8,000 to 1.794 million
New home sales drop 4.7 in April; March revised down
Median new house price up 3.9 to 433,500 from year ago

WASHINGTON, May 23 Reuters The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, pointing to underlying strength in the labor market that should continue to support the economy.

The second straight weekly decline in claims reported by the Labor Department on Thursday unwound most of the jump at the start of the month, which had lifted applications to a level last seen at the end of August. Though job growth is slowing as a result of hefty Federal Reserve interest rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, layoffs remain very low.

Claims settled down from the previous week, so the acceleration some had feared hasn39;t come to pass, said Robert Frick, corporate economist at Navy Federal Credit Union. The labor market remains robust, and if claims are the canary in the coal mine for jobs, it has yet to develop a mild cough.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 215,000 for the week ended May 18. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 220,000 claims in the latest week. There were notable declines in filings in California and Indiana.

Companies are generally holding on to their workers after experiencing difficulties finding labor during and after the COVID19 pandemic. That was underscored by a survey…