WASHINGTON (AP) -- The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits fell last week to its lowest level in eight years.<br />
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The Labor Department says weekly applications for unemployment aid dropped 19,000 to a seasonally adjusted 284,000. That's the lowest reading since February 2006, nearly two years before the Great Recession began.<br />
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The four-week average, a less volatile measure, declined 7,250 to 302,000. Claims for jobless aid have been falling for the past three months.<br />
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Applications are a proxy for layoffs. When businesses hold onto staff, increased hiring and stronger economic growth often follows.<br />
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Hiring is at its healthiest clip since the late 1990s and the 6.1 percent unemployment rate is at a 5 1/2-year low. Employers added 288,000 jobs in June, the fifth straight month of job gains above 200,000.
