Initial jobless claims fall by 12,000 from previous week

The Labor Department this morning reported a 12,000 decrease in initial jobless claims for the week that ended Nov. 7 compared with the previous week.

The overall figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 502,000.

The 4-week moving average was 519,750, a decrease of 4,500 from the previous week's revised average of 524,250, the Labor Department said.

Last week, the government reported the nation's jobless rate stood at 10.2 percent, the time the rate had been above 10 percent since 1982.

The weekly jobless claims serve as an indicator of the churn in the job market.